Devil's Trap
by myownmind
Summary: At the end of the last part of this story "Long Day", Nick Boyle had gone missing. This is the story of what happened to him and the efforts of his friends, Derek Rayne from The Legacy, Sam and Dean Winchester and Bobby of Supernatural to find him.
1. Chapter 1

_**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Supernatural, Poltergeist: The Legacy or The Unit. They belong to their creators, writers, actors and the companies that paid for their production and distribution. I simply like to borrow their characters from time to time. I promise to put them back when I'm done. Maybe.**_

_**Andrew, Jacob, Tyler and the werewolves are my own creations. Although, if you look closely Andrew looks a lot like Matthew Gray Gubler, Jacob like Thomas Gibson, and Tyler like Thomas Jane. At least those are the actors I based their appearance on. If I add more characters, I'll let you know what actors they look like. It's the best way for me to write!**_

_**I'd like to thank everyone who takes the time to read this story. I love watching the number of hits rise. I also REALLY love getting reviews. They absolutely make my day. Please take the time to let me know your thoughts. I try very hard to include readers' thoughts into my stories if it can be done.**_

_**If you haven't read the first two parts of this story I'm hoping it won't matter. There will be some things that carry over but it shouldn't get too confusing. The only thing you really need to know is that in 'Let There Be Demons' Sam is cured of his demon blood. In 'Long Day' Sam is infected with werewolf blood. While there is a cure, it's working very slowly on Sam because of his all ready compromised immune system.**_

_**Enough. I hope you enjoy the third instalment of this story. I am, of course, having a lot of fun writing it!!**_

_**Susanne**_

CHAPTER ONE

"What do you mean he's at the bottom of the sound?" Derek demanded as he stared at Alex. The San Francisco Legacy house security expert had been coming across to the island on the ferry. Andrew's RV with its lab equipment had been too big to bring across with everyone else. After the showdown with the werewolves back in New York, Derek hadn't expected any trouble. Neither had Jonas and the other Unit members, otherwise they would have stayed around until Nick had gotten across.

When the ferry had landed, in the middle of the night, the captain went looking for Nick, who'd stayed with the RV, and couldn't find him. Alex Devereaux, Legacy member and dear friend of Derek's, had triangulated Nick's cell phone, trying to locate him. The coordinates came back as being in the bottom of the sound.

"That's what I'm getting from the program. I've all ready checked it three times. I'm sorry, according to this he fell overboard," Alex stated. She was trying to keep the panic from her voice and features. That wouldn't help the situation and they needed to locate Nick Boyle ASAP. Her thoughts turned to the two brothers upstairs. They would not be happy either at the turn of events but she'd all ready decided to let them sleep until they had something more concrete.

"Send everyone you can out to search for him. I can't believe that Nick, with his Navy SEAL training, would fall off of the ferry but we need to be sure. Can you contact the SFPD and see if they can send some divers down to search as well? Just in case," Derek asked. He ran a mildly trembling hand over his mouth as his brain tried to think of everything that needed to be done. All ready he had a really bad feeling about this. Something had happened to his subordinate and friend. And he wanted to know what.

"It'll take a few minutes to coordinate everything," Alex stated as she picked up the phone and her phone book. "But I'll have the first boat out within five minutes."

"Thank you," Derek said, suddenly feeling very tired. He'd only just got Nick home again after their adventures in Europe. He wasn't ready to lose the younger man now. It would be like losing the son he'd never had.

Quietly, Alex left the kitchen so she could talk in private. Sitting at the kitchen table, Derek rested his head in his hands for all of three seconds. Unable to stand the inactivity, the San Francisco precept jumped to his feet and headed to the front door, grabbing a coat on the way.

Calling would have taken less time but Derek needed the exercise. As quickly as he could manage, he made his way to the pier where the ferry was still moored. Security there would have boats available to them. He planned on sending them out to search the GPS coordinates for Nick. If the younger man was in fact in the water, they needed to get to him quickly.

As he reached the pier, Derek found that he had been beaten by Alex. The security guards and crew of the ferry were all manning available water craft and heading back out on to the sound. Desperate, Derek managed to get on board the last boat just before it too headed out in the choppy waters. Search conditions weren't ideal but so long as the men were willing to go out, Derek was willing to let them. Dread gnawing on his insides, Derek scanned the dark waters even though they were still too far away from the coordinates to actually see anything. He didn't want to take the chance of missing Nick in the moonlight.

OOOOO

The first thing Nick noticed as he floated out of the impenetrable darkness was that his neck hurt. It felt like a wild animal had tried to eat him for supper. Groaning quietly, Nick instinctively tried to touch the area that hurt only to find he couldn't move his arms. Then he noticed he couldn't move his legs either. What the hell?

Cautiously, Nick forced his grey eyes open just a slit. If it was light on the other side of his eyelids, he didn't want to take the chance of being blinded, even temporarily. As he tried to assess his current surroundings, the other damage done previously to Nick's body made itself known. He ached all over and felt like he was coming down with one hell of a flu.

Opening Nick's eyes hadn't really helped him much. Even when he pried them a few millimetres further open all he found was darkness. What he smelled, however, was something else entirely. He was lying on a dirt floor. He could smell the soil under his head but it was mixed with a mildewy scent as well as the scent of sweat, fear, blood, feces and urine. Fear of his own tried to take over. Angrily, Nick forced it out of his mind. He needed to stay clear if he was going to figure out a way out of this. Whatever this was.

Just as the temptation to yell 'Hello' nearly overwhelmed him, Nick heard someone moving around very close by. Then he was dazzled by lights as a door appeared out of the wall just in front of him and rays of illumination from the world beyond fell across his face.

"Good morning sunshine," an unfamiliar voice grated from inside the blinding light. Blinking quickly, Nick tried to get his eyes to adjust as he felt two pairs of hands grab hold of him. Struggle as he may, there really wasn't a whole lot he could do about it. Whoever had tied him up had done a very good job. As he was pulled to his feet, Nick felt the muscles in the right side of his neck spasm. Another groan made its way from his lips.

"Did you sleep well?" the voice asked. It belonged to the person on his right. Fingers dug into his arms as he was dragged forward. Blinking had cleared his vision a bit but it still didn't help him figure out where he was or why. The walls of the corridor he was being pulled through were made of rough hewn stone. The mortar and craftsmanship reminded the Ex Navy SEAL of English castles. He doubted that was possible though, nothing in California was that old.

"W..Who..," it was all Nick could get out. It seemed as if he had no control over his own muscles, a distressing thought.

"Oh, don't worry, you'll find out soon enough," a second male voice from his left stated. There were a number of large wooden doors along the hallway but his captors ignored them all. Nick got the impression of a dungeon and his mind flashed onto another such underground labyrinth he'd had help escaping from not that long ago. Only this time he doubted very much that Bob Brown and Derek were going to come to his rescue.

Too tired to reply, Nick simply let his body dangle uselessly between the two men. He didn't have the strength to mount any form of resistance even if he could get loose of his bonds. He did, however, scan everything around him, trying to keep a map of the building straight in his mind. Knowing the layout of the land would help him when he made his escape.

The muscles across his shoulders and spine were beginning to spasm. A low moan escaped his lips as the pain registered. Nick hated showing weakness but there was only so much a body and mind could take before things became overwhelming. Nick hoped he wasn't at that point but he had to admit his eyes were having trouble focusing on his surroundings. The only thing he was really aware of was how much he hurt.

Apparently the two men dragging Nick had heard the sound. Without warning, both of them lifted Nick a little higher off the ground, putting more pressure on his shoulders. The spasms intensified, sending shock waves of pain through Nick's system. Gulping bile, he tried to keep his discomfort to himself. He wasn't entirely successful. Another moan escaped. Then Nick did something completely out of character and unplanned. Nick passed out.

_A/N: I'm sorry this is so short. It seemed longer when I was writing it! The next one will be longer, I promise._


	2. Chapter 2

_I am so very sorry it has taken me this long to update this story. It's been on my mind but with Christmas I haven't been updating much of anything. Now that things are beginning to get back to normal (only New Years to get through) I'll update much faster. I'm shooting for once a week. Hopefully I'll do better than that but we'll have to wait and see._

_Thank you ever so much for my faithful reviewers. I hope you haven't given up on me!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWO

Despite hours spent combing the angry waters of the Sound not a single sign was found of Nick. Derek had to admit defeat and allow the divers to begin their search below the waters. It meant moving most of the vessels out of the area and sending them to examine all of the land nearby or within reach of the strong undercurrents.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Derek signalled to the captain of the boat he was on to head back to Angel Island. He wasn't looking forward to telling the others that he hadn't found Nick. While he stood at the front of the boat, Derek tried to come up with what he was going to tell Alex and Rachel. What he was going to tell Sam and Dean was another creature entirely.

OOOOO

"Well?" Alex asked apprehensively. She and Rachel were standing on the dock, waiting, when the boat pulled in. Both women were wrapped up in heavy clothes. The weather had taken a turn for the worse while Derek had been out on the boat. He shivered under his light coat as the Precept climbed off the boat and headed for the ferry.

"So far there's no sign of him. But we're not giving up," Derek responded as he climbed on board the second ship. The two women trailed behind him, not entirely sure what he was doing.

"What about the GPS coordinates?" Alex persisted. She recognized that her boss was trying to find something with one of his other senses. The impression was reinforced as Derek knelt down by the small blood stain on the ferry deck and tentatively placed his fingers on it.

"Water, just lots of water," Derek said as he closed his eyes. Images flashed behind his eye lids, fear, blood and violence. A pain ripped through the side of his throat. The only clear image he got was of a set of too long canine teeth followed shortly by more pain. Try as he might, Derek couldn't decide whether the teeth belonged to a werewolf or a vampire, there wasn't enough of the image.

"What do we do now?" Rachel asked as she knelt down beside the older man.

"The divers are searching below the water and the ships are searching the nearest beaches. That's about all we can do at the moment unless I get more information than I currently am," Derek responded absently. He sensed rather than heard Alex kneel beside him as well. The dark skinned woman also reached out to touch the blood, although not as experienced as Derek she too had the gift. Derek was willing to take any help he could get.

OOOOO

Darkness swirled around him and through him. Nick was only vaguely aware of his body but he knew pain waited to pounce on him as soon as he came awake. Instead, he chose to stay within the dark confines of his mind for just a little while longer. It was an act that was very atypical of the ex navy SEAL. Nick was used to meeting challenges head on, with as much violence and fire power as necessary. At this moment, however, he relished the complete lack of sensation.

Then Nick was thrown forcefully back into consciousness as his shoulder was pulled over his head. The pain was excruciating, lacing from over his shoulder blade all the way to the top of his head. Lights flashed around his head but Nick didn't have the energy to open his eyes. His other arm was pulled up over his head. Then his full weight was suspended between the two limbs.

Slowly Nick became aware of an oppressive heat pushing into his longs and against his skin. He didn't think he was close to a fire but was in a confined space that was containing the heat. Two people shuffled around him in what sounded like sand or dirt. That didn't make a lot of sense unless he was in a dungeon or something. There were no breezes or other air movement so he didn't think he was outside.

"What's so special about him that he's worth all the extra trouble?" a male voice said somewhere off of Nick's left side. There was an odd hiss to the man's voice and it dripped with malice.

"I don't know. I do know that we're supposed to treat him with kid gloves. Well, as much as we ever do," a second male voice stated from in front of Nick. Instinctively, Nick flinched as he felt something cold press against his wounded neck. New pain blossomed, taking Nick's breath away.

"He's chained up, do we have to stay here with him?" the first voice asked. Nick heard stones clatter somewhere nearby but low, probably on or near the ground.

"Those were the orders. I don't think he wants to take the chance of one of the others coming on him accidently and killing him. After tasting that I can understand why," the second voice said.

Even now, after the new flashes of pain had passed, Nick was finding it very hard to draw breath. His mind blurred while his lungs struggled to inflate against the pressure from having his arms pinned above his head. Nick tried to get his feet under him, to stand up and relieve some of the tension in his chest muscles but he was either completely lacking in coordination or his feet were tied.

"Having him hanging like this is going to make feeding very hard," the second voice stated. The owner of the voice had shifted slightly. Pulling his head up, Nick tried to force his eyes open enough to take in his surroundings better. All he saw was a big blur with a lighted center. Beyond the voices he recognized the gentle popping and crackling of a fire. That would explain the localized light.

"What would you suggest?" the first voice asked. He'd moved further away. Despite the pain, Nick shifted his head in that direction only to find the world there was a large dark blur. He wasn't sure if his vision was being affected by a concussion, even though he didn't remember being hit on the head, or if it was a reaction to his low oxygen levels.

"Let's use this instead." There was a loud scraping sound from somewhere, it was too loud and all encompassing for Nick to be sure which direction it came from. Then he was being lifted. Without malice but without care either. The pressure on his chest increased, completely cutting off his ability to breathe.

Struggle as he might, Nick was unable to get away from the hands that had grasped him around the biceps and were pulling him somewhere else. Even with his eyes open, he only got blurred impressions of movement. Then he was forced onto a hard, cold surface and his arms were drawn across his stomach and secured.

"Do you think he's awake?" the second man asked from above Nick and to his right. Nick tried to struggle but was unable to prevent his ankles being secured to something cold and solid. Visions of the old sacrificial altars crept unbidden into his mind. A chill settled into the core of his being.

"Does it matter?" the first voice asked.

"I'd really like to taste a little bit more of him," the second voice stated. Nick caught movement off to his right and then someone was pulling at his belt buckle. What the purpose of undoing his belt buckle escaped him in his current muddled state but Nick knew intuitively that he wasn't going to like it. Grunting through clenched teeth, he tried to move his body away from the too cold hands. "Good, I like it when they're awake."

"Don't touch me," Nick managed as he continued to struggle. He was rapidly losing all strength in his body but he wasn't about to give up. It was bad enough he'd allowed himself to be kidnapped again. He wasn't about to make it easy on them.

"What's the fun in that?" the second voice asked. Effortlessly, the ex SEAL had his jeans pulled down around his knees. Any further would require releasing his ankles and clearly his tormentor didn't intend to do that.

Nick's vision began to clear enough for him to see that he was in a dimly lit room. It was a cross between a cave and a dungeon cell. In the insufficient light he couldn't tell for sure which of the two the room was. He could see objects hanging off the stone walls, creating dark splotches against the lighter stone. A few feet to Nick's left was a fire pit in which a low fire continued to burn, filling the room with heat.

As Nick struggled, he realized he was breathing better now that his arms were secured across his body and not above his head. It made struggling easier but it didn't seem to increase his effectiveness. Despite his struggles, Nick could feel his right leg being shifted, exposing his inner thigh. From all his years of training and a few hours of watching television, Nick knew that the femoral artery made its way from his hip down to his ankle along the inside of his leg.

Memories flashed through Nick's mind. Alex, her eyes flashing, effectively removing every ounce of self will he possessed, as she moved into rip his throat open. The dark skinned beauty had been turned into a vampire. All she had to do was to drain her first kill. Luckily for him, she'd chosen Nick for the honour.

Alex had chosen Nick not once but twice to be her first kill. The first time had been at the behest of two of Alex's old friends. The second time had been under the tutelage of Marcus, the oldest vampire in a community of them. He'd wanted Alex to join them, to fulfill the destiny Alex had begun before. In both instances, Nick owed his life to both Alex and Derek.

Struggling against the strong emotions and memories, Nick came back to the present just as he felt sharp teeth puncture the delicate skin of his thigh. Pain overwhelmed his system as a sensation of drowning washed over him. For the third time in his life, Nick was being fed on by a vampire. Despite fought with the pain as Nick slipped into unconsciousness.


	3. Chapter 3

_I'm so sorry that it's taken me so long to get this out and that it's so short. I'm writing my stories as the ideas come to me. Unfortunately, at the moment, there's not a lot coming to me. I don't want to write just for the sake of doing it, it comes out forced that way. So, I will write as it comes to me but I can't say how often that will be. I'll do it as soon as I can, though!!_

_Thanks for sticking with me!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THREE

Feeling like he'd aged a hundred years, Derek gained his feet and headed off toward the pier. There was something he'd been avoiding but he was going to have to deal with it, right now. As the San Francisco Precept climbed onto the wooden pier and headed for the vehicle, Alex knelt down beside the blood droplets. Carefully, she took a sample of the blood stain. The scientist in her wanted to make absolutely sure that this had come from, that would require running the DNA against the Legacy data base. Sighing as she stood up, Alex hurried to catch up with Rachel as both women left the ferry.

OOOOO

"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded. He and Sam had made their way to the now familiar kitchen for breakfast. Neither of them was feeling particularly spry but their bodies had insisted they eat. Then they found Alex and Derek standing around the kitchen island, cups of coffee in their hands. What Derek had told them made Dean suddenly not so hungry.

"Nick didn't make it across the Sound this morning. Alex found the GPS coordinates of his cell phone and we're searching the area. So far, though, we've found nothing," Derek admitted. He was only partially in the present. Most of his mind was running over the images he'd seen after touching Nick's blood.

"Why didn't you wake us up?" Sam demanded. The earlier lethargy had vanished, along with his appetite. There weren't that many people in the world that Sam had a real connection to but Nick Boyle was one of them. If there was something he could do to help the older man, he was going to do it.

"You needed the sleep," Rachel said as she entered the room. It was hard to not hear the raised voices even from the foyer. "There wasn't anything you could do anyway."

"That's not the point. Where's my car?" Dean asked. He had no idea where to start but sitting around the kitchen wasn't going to help matters either.

"I'm not sure," Derek responded. "I think Bobby had it hauled back to his salvage yard."

"Yep," Bobby said as he walked into the room. From the tense expressions on the Winchesters' faces, something bad had happened.

"Nick has a car, right?" Sam asked. The fact that Dean's car was at Bobby's Salvage yard was a problem. There was a lot of equipment in the back of that car, stuff that would come in handy at the moment.

"Where would you start looking?" Derek wondered. He knew the two men were concerned for Nick. Hell, he was concerned for his security chief. But going off half cocked wasn't going to help anyone, least of all Nick.

"You've searched the GPS coordinates with no luck. We will start on the mainland," Dean responded. He was all ready coming up with a list of supplies that they were going to need. He only hoped that Derek was willing to supply the things they needed. If they had to go looking for stuff, it would slow them down considerably.

"The mainland is a pretty big area," Derek said. "Do you have any idea how to narrow down the possibilities?"

"Nick isn't your average citizen. He knows what's out there. He knows what to look for. That means whoever or whatever it was took him by surprise. That should narrow it down a little, right?" Sam said, almost pleading. There had to be a way to find Nick. Brushing wayward chestnut hair out of his eyes, he looked around the room at the two people he trusted most, Dean and Bobby, hoping desperately that they would come up with an answer.

"Sure, kid," Bobby said, trying to give the youngest Winchester a reassuring look. The old hunter wasn't sure he was entirely successful. This was like looking for a needle in a stack of needles. He heaved a huge sigh as he glanced over at Derek. Things weren't looking good at the moment.

Silently, Alex left the room. The despair in the room was oppressive. Slipping the sample out of her pocket, the dark haired Legacy member headed for the lab area.

OOOOO

"I think I found something," Alex announced as she stepped into the kitchen. Despite Sam and Dean's need to head out immediately, the arrival of Andrew and Jacob had prevented that. Derek was getting tired of telling the same bad news over and over again but it seemed to be his lot in life today. The new arrivals were standing by the kitchen island, cups of coffee in both their hands. Thanks to recent events, neither of them were feeling particularly spry today either. The coffee seemed to be helping though.

"What?" Dean demanded. He was chomping at the bit to get going. There was one thing Dean Winchester didn't do well, that was sitting still. The only thing that was keeping him here at the moment was the fact that Sam still looked pretty pale.

"I took a sample of the blood on the ferry. It's definitely Nick's DNA but it was mixed with something," Alex stated as she passed out the results she'd found. Automatically all of the people in the room took a copy but from the look on Dean's face, not all of them understood what they were looking at.

"Well?" Dean grumbled in impatience.

"There was saliva in the sample. While there wasn't enough for a complete DNA profile, I did find out one thing. We're dealing with vampires," Alex said. Well, it was someplace to start anyway.

OOOOO

The world came back slowly. Nick wasn't entirely sure he wanted to go to the light because he knew pain was waiting for him there. The only problem was that the only chance he had of saving himself resided in the light. Steeling himself, Nick pried his grey eyes opened.

It was rather anticlimactic. All Nick found was a pale stone wall reaching up into darkness. For whatever reason, his eyes were still not quite focusing properly. Looking down his body, Nick found that his jeans had been pulled up again but there was a cold, stiff spot where the blood from his leg had seeped through the material. His body was still aching and complaining but he was able to push the noise to the back of his mind. Now that he was lying down, he found that his neck didn't even hurt quite as badly. If only it wasn't so damned cold in this place.

Shifting his head to the side, Nick saw that the fire was still burning in the fireplace. Then realization hit him. He was hypovolemic. Of course he was cold. Pulling against his restraints, Nick found that they were still as tight. A stick in his right side stopped him short. Apparently his old injuries weren't as old as he'd hoped. Sucking breath between his teeth, Nick tried again to look around.

The light from the fire place didn't illuminate the area very well but Nick realized he all ready had the lay of the land. He was in a small stone walled room, very similar to a dungeon. Somehow that knowledge didn't bring him much comfort. As hard as Nick tried to stop it, his eyes kept trying to close on him.

"So," a quiet voice asked from somewhere beyond Nick's feet. "How are you feeling?"

Tracking his eyes toward his feet, Nick's blood ran cold. Even in the dim light he recognized the slight blond man standing in the entrance. _No! Not again!!_ screamed in Nick's mind. It was Marcus.


	4. Chapter 4

_Thank you very much for continuing to stick with me on this one. It's not coming as fast or as easy as I'd like but I am thinking about it a lot, trying to figure out a direction for it. I think I've got it figured out but it's still coming slowly. I'll update again as soon as more than five words string together at a time. That gets very frustrating!!_

_I hope you enjoy the new chapter. It's not moving very fast but I am setting up for something, honest!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER FOUR

"Are you sure we're dealing with vampires?" Andrew asked. He was leaning against the counter, eating a bowl of cereal. He couldn't remember ever being this hungry.

"Positive. If I had more of a sample I could probably tell you who if we've run into them before," Alex said.

"Then I need to get some new supplies," Andrew said. All ready he was making a list in his head. He'd often tried to take on the vampire virus but he hadn't had a new supply of vampire blood in a very long time. Vampires were even more secretive than the werewolves.

"What kind of supplies?" Derek asked. Getting the young scientist what he needed wasn't really high on his list of priorities at the moment. Now that he knew they were dealing with vampires, he was running through all the possibilities. Despite having watched Marcus burn in the sun, he wasn't about to eliminate the blond haired vampire as a suspect. He'd resurrected from the dead twice before.

"Herbs, charms, you know, the usual stuff," Andrew responded. He glanced over at his friend. Jacob was looking better today even if he was still favouring his injured side. They both felt significantly better after a good night's sleep.

"Why? Why do you need that?" Dean growled. He was standing along the counter as well, his arms crossed over his chest in impatience. The longer they took getting out there, the longer the vampire or vampires had Nick. Why the other members of the Legacy were so damned calm was beyond him.

"If they turn Nick, we may want to have a way to bring him back ready," Andrew responded. He finished his cereal and placed the bowl and spoon in the kitchen sink. "Where is the nearest occult shop?"

"On the mainland," Alex answered. Part of their job at the Legacy was to keep tabs on all forms of supernatural objects, people and practitioners. She knew every shop in San Francisco that carried items that could be used in spells.

"I need to go there as soon as possible. I'd also like to get hold of some vampire blood. Do you have access to any?" Andrew asked.

"No, I can't say that we do," Rachel said. She was looking at the young man like he was from another planet. He was far too excited by the prospect of vampires. Wasn't he aware of how deadly they were? Images of Nick, sprawled on Alex's bed, his neck ripped open and his heart stopped kept playing through her head. It had been nothing short of a miracle that she'd managed to resuscitate Nick after Alex had fed on him. She wasn't sure how the security expert was going to respond to being in that situation again.

"That's too bad. Oh, well, I can get everything else ready. Just make sure you get some blood, the fresher the better. It'll be the key to figuring out the virus," Andrew said. Nodding at Jacob, Andrew left the room, headed for the stairs. He wasn't going dressed in him pyjamas.

"I'll go with him," Jacob stated with less enthusiasm. "I don't want anyone throwing him in an asylum if he starts talking about vampires out there." Considerably slower, Jacob left the room in Andrew's wake.

"I'll show them the shops," Alex said. She turned to the nearest phone and called the gate to send up a car.

"Enough," Dean growled. He couldn't stand it anymore. He needed to be out and doing something, not sitting around the kitchen. "We're going to head out and start scouring the city."

"Where will you start?" Derek asked. He understood the younger man's impatience. But running off half-cocked wasn't going to improve the situation at all.

"The docks and make our way from there," Sam said. They were used to going on wild goose chases. This certainly wouldn't be the first time they headed out without a clear direction.

"Do you have a better idea?" Bobby asked.

"If you're going to go out there searching you're going to need some supplies. I'll give you everything you need under two conditions," Derek said.

"What conditions?" Dean grumbled. No matter the conditions it would save them valuable time if they didn't have to search for supplies.

"First, I want you two to take Jacob, Andrew and Alex to the occult shop. I don't think they should be allowed to go alone given Jacob's current condition. Secondly, I'm going to give you a long range radio. You stay in contact no matter what. If you find anything at all, I want you to let us know," Derek instructed.

"What do you think?" Sam asked, looking at his brother. It sounded like a good deal but if Dean didn't like it they'd head out on their own. An unhappy Dean made for a very bad traveling companion.

"Shit," Dean swore as he ran a hand through his close cropped dark blond hair. "Fine, so long as they don't take too long on their little shopping spree."

"Good," Derek said as he stood up from the chair. "Follow me, I'll show you our collection."

OOOOO

"Well, well, you're not looking very good, Nicky my boy," Marcus said as he paced around the alter running his hand over the human's body. Under his fingers, he could feel Nick trembling. It could be from the coldness of his touch or just plain fear. He relished both thoughts. There was nothing he liked more than to see Nick Boyle, the man responsible for his twenty first death frightened and weakened. Sucking a breath between his teeth, Marcus leaned over and put his face beside Nick's. "You're not getting enough sun light."

"Go to hell," Nick growled. It was the only thing that would come out through the waves of panic and fear rolling over him. The vampire's breath smelled of death, blood and crypts. It dragged images of Alex, her teeth sharp and long, bending down to feed on him from the dark recesses his mind. It had happened twice. Nick had hoped it would never happen again. Bile rose in his throat.

"Oh, so eloquent," Marcus responded as he ran his tongue up the side of Nick's throat. Swallowing hard, the human tried to pull away but there was nowhere for him to go, the bindings were too tight. "You're probably wondering why I've gone through all the trouble to bringing you here, right?"

"I thought you just missed my company," Nick said. It was easier to talk with Marcus than deal with the memories. Waves of helplessness and cold flowed through him. He couldn't stop the chills that were wracking his body, taking away his energy with them. He felt like he was drowning. It was an all too familiar sensation. The fact that his head was spinning from loss of blood didn't help matters much.

"Well, you're partially right," Marcus said, a sly grin on his face as he stood back. "I wanted to introduce you to someone."

"I'm not looking for a date," Nick said. His teeth were chattering, making talking difficult. His eyes were having trouble following the vampire. He blended in too well with the darkness. The only thing giving him some indication of where Marcus was was the sound of his voice. Personally, Nick wished he'd shut the hell up.

"That's too bad. My sister is dying to meet you," Marcus hissed somewhere near the entrance. There was a rustle of clothing. Craning his neck, Nick tried to see what was going on but he wasn't able to. Then a pale face was hovering over his body, startling him.

"What's so special about him?" a female voice purred. Another too cold hand touched his right hand and slowly moved up his arm. Apparently both of them had been watching the same shows. The cold touch didn't improve his shivering. If anything, it made the trembling worse.

"There's just something about Mr. Nick Boyle that makes him irresistible," Marcus said from the entrance. "It hasn't worked out using him as a first kill so I've decided to turn him instead. We can always use a vampire as stubborn as him."

"I'd rather die first," Nick grated as he struggled against his bonds. It didn't accomplish anything except to wear him out but he felt he needed to do it anyway. The female vampire's hand was crossing his right shoulder to his neck. Her thin fingers were cold as ice, sending chills up and down his spine. He didn't think he'd ever be warm again.

"Well, that's certainly part of the plan," the female said. Her fingers trailed across his neck to the other side and began making their way down his left side. "Can we do it now?"

"No. Now that he knows what I have planned for him, I want him to live with that knowledge for a while. It'll make the blood all the sweeter," Marcus said. "But, you can still have a taste, just don't drain him."

"That's very generous of you," the female said. The hand was joined by another at his waist as the female climbed onto the alter. Nick had nowhere to go. Try as he might, now that adrenaline was pumping through his system, all he was doing was ripping the skin under the bindings, increasing his blood loss.

"Hmmm, I love it when they fight it," the female purred. All Nick could see was the female's pale face. She must have been dressed in a colour that matched the walls or at least blended really well. It was disconcerting to see her face and nothing else, especially when it was so close. When she breathed on him, it felt like the doors of hell were being opened into his soul.

Still struggling for all he was worth, Nick tried to knock the woman off balance and off of him. While he couldn't see her body, he could feel everywhere she touched, it was like she was pulling all the heat out of the world. Slowly her hands made their way up from his waist to his torso and then to his neck. Effortlessly, she turned Nick's head to the side, baring his jugular on the right side. Fear turned to terror. Nick knew where this was going.

Raising her head, the female bared her fangs, her mouth wide. Hissing like a snake, her head plummeted toward Nick's neck. As her teeth ripped through the delicate tissue to the artery beneath, the sensation of drowning returned. Nick's life was being drained away and there wasn't a damned thing he could do about it. Then darkness descended.


	5. Chapter 5

_Yay! Another update. I was looking at my stories to update and this one leapt out at me. I have no idea where I'm going with this great grandfather thing, it just came out. We'll see what happens. Thanks for sticking with me!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER FIVE

Dean felt like he was ready to rip his hair out by the roots. The last thing he wanted to do at the moment was shop. Thanks to Derek opening up the Legacy armoury they were well stocked with weapons, holy water, crosses, silver, etc. He hated wasting the time of escorting Jacob, Andrew and Alex to the shop.

Taking a deep breath as he stood in the sun on the sidewalk outside the small store, Dean tried to calm his irritation. While it was justified, it certainly wasn't helping matters much either. Ahead of him, Alex led the way through the glass door. A bell rang as the door swung open. For some reason Dean had expected maniacal laughter instead of a bell. It made more sense in an occult store.

"You ready for this?" Sam asked. He'd been standing beside his brother, waiting for Dean to make the first move. So far he'd been very disappointed. It seemed as if his older brother was rooted to the spot, staring at a display in the front window of a witch's cauldron and strange stuffed black cats stirring the contents.

"Let's get it over with," Dean growled as he followed Jacob through the glass door. Stepping into the story was exactly what he'd expected to find. The air smelled of spices and incense, almost cloying in its intensity. Crystals of different colours and sizes took up one entire shelving unit on one side. A large book case was full to overflowing with leather bound books and a few newer ones. As soon as Sam got in the door he honed in on the books. Dean stifled a snort as Sam made a bee-line toward them.

"Good morning!" a plump woman called out from behind a long glass case. She wasn't ugly by any stretch of the imagination but definitely older than Dean would look twice at. Hell, she had to be in her forties if she was a day. "How can I help you?"

"Hello," Andrew said as he stepped up to the counter. He pulled a piece of lined paper out of his shirt pocket and carefully unfolded it and smoothed it out on top of the glass surface. "I'm looking for some ingredients for research. They're very specific. Do you have any inventory beyond what you've displayed out here?"

The woman blinked her brown eyes behind her wire rim glasses as she took in her five customers. Clearly she was trying to decide if she could trust them to show them all of her treasures. "What type of items are we talking about?" she asked, her friendly, round face quickly clouding with suspicion.

"Here's my list," Andrew said as he flipped the sheet of paper so it was right side up for her and then slid it across toward her. "I don't have a lot of time to waste on this. Whatever you can help me out with will be greatly appreciated."

Picking the piece of paper up, the woman looked closely at her customers between scanning the items. The detail of the list impressed her greatly. Clearly this was not an amateur she was dealing with. All the better, she hated it when people played at being witches. It gave the real ones bad names.

"Okay. I have all of this in the back. It's my own private collection, not for sale to just anyone," the woman hedged. She didn't want to get in trouble with the authorities but she could really use the sale. Despite her dislike of wannabe witches, there weren't nearly enough of them around anymore.

"We can pay whatever you think is a fair price," Alex piped up from the book case. She'd joined Sam at examining the books. She had a passion for reading too. Also, she wanted to make sure that there wasn't something within the shelf that could get an average person in trouble by dabbling in things they didn't understand.

"I'll need to see your stock," Andrew said. Now that he was in his element, all signs of hesitation were gone. Dean was amused by the fact the kid looked like he'd grown 3 or 4 inches now that he was standing straight. Hell, he even looked 3 or 4 years older. "I need to check its freshness."

Various emotions played across the woman's face. Jacob was trying to keep busy looking at amulets in a glass case in the middle of the room but even he could tell that she was trying to decide whether she should be insulted or not. Finally, the need to make the sale outweighed her injured pride.

"If you would come this way, I'll show you where it is. I don't have to worry about the rest of you, do I?" the store keep asked, looking particularly at Dean and Sam.

"No," Alex replied, a smile on her face. "We will be fine."

When Andrew and the woman disappeared beyond the beads hanging over the door behind the counter, Dean turned to Jacob. He too was trying to decide if he should take offense at what she'd intimated. "What? Do we look scruffy or something?" Dean asked the older man. Looking down at his ripped jeans, well worn shirt and leather jacket, Dean tried to figure out what the woman's problem was. He didn't get it.

"She's obviously used to a higher class of customer," Jacob replied, trying to stifle a grin. The young man's hurt pride wasn't really funny but it certainly was unexpected. With everything the brothers had seen and done the fact that what a store clerk thought of them mattered was just amusing. "I wouldn't worry about it."

"I'm not worried," Dean growled as he glanced at the door the two had passed through. "This is taking too long."

"We will have you on your way in just a few minutes," Jacob stated. His side was aching. He wasn't sure if it was because he'd over done it yesterday or if it was a reaction to the moisture in the air from the ocean, just four blocks away. Either way, he was finding it hard to concentrate on anything for more than a few minutes. The trinkets in the display case were just that, costume jewellery. There was nothing truly magical about anything within its confines. Stretching his side a little, Jacob moved off to the next display.

"Are you okay?" Dean asked as he began following the older man around. Now that he was closer he could see that Jacob's dark hair was stuck to the back of his neck. He was sweating and yet the temperature in the shop was far from hot. After spending some time with Jacob and Andrew, he'd decided they were okay.

"I'm fine," Jacob responded automatically. He wished, though, that Andrew would hurry up. As much as he hated to admit it, his bed was calling his name.

"Dean," Sam called from the book case. He and Alex were pouring over a really old leather bound book. It looked to be a journal of some kind. Sam was excited which usually meant it was some kind of academic paper or secret witches' book. Whatever. If there wasn't sex involved Dean wasn't sure he cared.

"What?" Dean grumbled as he moved over to join them. Looking past his kid brother's shoulder, Dean peered at the time yellowed pages. Inside was a rolling script with much better penmanship than Dean was capable of. For a few moments he thought it must be written by a woman but then the words caught his attention. "What the hell is that?"

"It's a journal," Sam said as he ran his hands almost reverently over the page. "I think it was written by our great grandfather."

"What are you talking about?" Dean grunted. He wanted to grab the book and get a closer look but he didn't think Sam would let go. The kid really had a thing for books.

"I think this book belonged to our mother's grandfather. He was a hunter. Look," Sam said as he carefully closed the book and then opened it to the front page. Under a sigil of some kind was written a name and a date. They both fit. Awe spread through Dean as he carefully withdrew the book from his brother's trembling hands. It couldn't be. Why the hell would his mother's family have let this go if it really was written by their great grandfather? It didn't make any sense at all.

"What's in it?" Dean asked. He scanned the pages but it wasn't making a whole lot of sense. There must be some kind of spell on it otherwise Dean should have been able to read it.

"I'm not sure," Sam responded. There was wonder in his kid brother's eyes. It was the first real sign of life Dean had seen in him for a long time, far too long. Whatever this book cost he was going to make sure his brother got it. Anything that took his brother out of his own head for a while was a good thing. Besides, they might actually learn something from old great grandpa.

Further discussion was interrupted by the return of Andrew and the store keeper. Andrew had a well satisfied smile on his face and his hands were full of bags. The shop owner seemed to be less suspicious now too.

"Did you get everything?" Alex asked as she took the book from the brothers and headed toward the cash register. This was going to go on the Legacy tab. There was no way she was going to let the Winchesters put it on a fraudulent credit card.

"Yes, I got everything on the list plus a few extras," Andrew replied. He looked like a kid in a candy store with an unlimited supply of money. It was kind of the same expression on Sam's face.

"Good," Alex said as she pulled out the credit card and handed it to the lady. "We also want this."

"You don't have to do that," Sam said as he stepped out. He hated the thought of owing anything to the woman. Owing Nick was a different matter, he was almost family.

"Think of it as a belated birthday present for both of you," Alex stated. Quickly the woman rang up the bill. Alex didn't even flinch at the $100.00 price tag for the book. She knew the woman was gouging but she couldn't hold it against her. They had been the only customers she'd had the entire time they'd been there. "Besides, Nick will kill me if he finds out I turned down a chance to make you happy."

OOOOO

Their purchases carefully secured, the group left the store and headed back to the SUV Derek had lent them. They'd also brought Nick's Mustang across on the ferry but not everyone and their purchases would have fit within its significantly smaller confines. Besides, once the brothers delivered the others to the ferry, they were going to head off. Reluctantly, Sam allowed Alex to take the book back to the island. He had no idea where they were going or where they would end up. Sam wanted to make sure the book was kept safe until he'd had time to study it.

Alex and Andrew piled the bags in the back of the vehicle while Jacob walked around the side to the driver's side rear door. He was moving slowly. His ribs were burning with every movement. Coming out with Andrew had been a really bad idea. The first layer of his clothes was soaked in sweat. His bed was looking better and better all the time.

Dean automatically climbed behind the steering wheel. It was his usual position. Sam climbed in beside him. That was his usual position. Alex and Andrew were left to sort it out themselves. Slipping into the middle seat, Andrew accidently brushed against his friend. Jacob nearly jumped out the window as new pain blossomed. Damn but he needed to find his bed.

"I'm sorry," Andrew cried having seen the grimace flash over Jacob's pale face. He was going to have to figure out that potion for healing bones. He was sure he had the formula in his motor home.

"It's okay," Jacob tried to reassure his young friend as he shifted to find a more comfortable position. There wasn't one in the crowded back seat. Thankfully, once they reached the ferry there would be significantly more room in the vehicle.

OOOOO

By the time Dean pulled up by the Mustang, early afternoon had arrived. Dean was becoming impatient again. Leaving the keys in the ignition, he practically jumped out of the SUV and reached the Mustang in a few strides. Sam was right behind him.

"Check in at 4pm?" Alex said as she stood beside the driver's side window of the Mustang. She knew the brothers were anxious but she wanted to make sure they kept their part of the bargain with Derek.

"Yes, mother," Sam said with a smile. It felt kind of good to have people worried about them. He was starting to feel tired but he hid it behind his grin. There was no way he was being left behind on this one. "Can you give Bobby the book? He might make head way before we get back."

"Sure thing, junior," Alex responded, flashing a smile of her own. Then she climbed into the driver's seat and the two vehicles moved away in opposite directions.

OOOOO

The world came back slowly for Nick. The entire time he was wondering if he really wanted it to come back at all. All six puncture wounds felt like someone was jabbing a burning hot brand into them and twisting it. The pain too his breath away and made it very hard to concentrate on the world around him.

"I think he's waking up!" the female vampire purred. Then a cold hand slid under his shirt and rubbed his abdomen and chest. Chills coursed through his system. Grinding his teeth against the agony, Nick forced his eyes open. All he saw was a gray haze.

"We'd better leave him for a while. I don't want him to die yet. There wouldn't be any fun in that," Marcus said from the doorway.

"If we're going to turn him what does it matter if he dies now or later?" the female asked. Her other hand had joined the first. They were making small circles on his flesh, raising goose bumps wherever they went.

"I want him to suffer. I hate dying. It takes so long to build up my strength again. That deserves some recompense," Marcus stated. "Can I leave you alone with him? Can I trust you to not drain him, Patricia?"

"Hmmm," Patricia purred as her hands slipped beneath Nick's jeans. The chill got worse. Now it felt like it had reached the core of his being. Nick didn't even have the strength to fight. All he could do was close his eyes and hope she got bored quickly. "I don't know. He's not much fun at the moment."

"I'm going to go get him something to drink and some more wood. The fire is getting low. I'll be back, so don't do anything premature." With that, Marcus turned and left, humming quietly to himself. He knew his sister was going to have fun with Nick. That was what he'd planned on.

"Don't touch me," Nick managed to growl between clenched teeth. She'd moved beyond his belt do the regions below. It was like having a snow man grab his genitals. Icicles of pain flowed through his body, burning through his bite marks and slicing through his brain. Gasping, Nick closed his eyes tighter and tried to imagine he was somewhere else, anywhere else.

"I sure hope this is just because you're cold," Patricia purred as she continued to fondle him. She'd found the bite mark on his leg and was exploring it with one hand while her other stayed with the treasures it had found.

"Go to hell," Nick hissed as his back arched off the alter. The pain was overwhelming, the cold even worse. In an effort to protect itself from the onslaught of sensations and emotions, Nick's mind flipped the switch and the world plunged into darkness once again.

"Well now, what's the fun in that?" Patricia said, a satisfied smirk on her face. Extending a finger nail, she ran it over the cotton t-shirt, slicing the material in half. It fell away, revealing Nick's chest and abdomen. "Nice."

Then she turned her attention to that pesky belt. She wanted to unwrap her present while her brother was gone. He was always a party pooper and spoiled all her fun.


	6. Chapter 6

_Hi! Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about this story. I may even have an idea of where I'm going with it. ;) I hope I haven't lost you. Things are starting to click! I hope you enjoy the new chapter._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SIX

By the time the brothers got back to Angel Island it was midnight. They were hot, dirty, hungry and more than a little disappointed. They'd thought about staying at a motel near the last location they'd searched but for some unidentified reason, they felt the need to be close to family. That meant being close to Bobby and maybe the Legacy members. Suddenly leaving the older hunter behind had seemed like a really bad idea.

The ferry ride across the sound was eerie. Dean couldn't stand sitting in his car while the ferry chugged along. He scrambled out of the Impala's driver's side door and paced over to the side, placed his left foot against the low wall and watched the water pass by in the moonlight. The hum of the ferry engine drowned out the sounds of the waves it created and even the occasional bird that flew by. Somehow, he still heard the passenger door open and close and his little brother come around to stand beside him.

"We'll find him," Sam said once he got close enough. It had been a long, fruitless day. Both of them were ready to crash into a bed.

"Like hell we will. It's like looking for a needle in a hay stack. We need Nick's help on this one but he's not here. We don't know this area well enough to do a proper search," Dean replied, not looking away from the water.

"We know what to look for, the elements that the vampires need for a proper lair. That ought to be enough, shouldn't it?" Sam asked. He leaned against the driver's side of the Impala. He'd managed to keep up with his brother but now the exhaustion was getting the better of him. Despite how he acted, there was still a weakness inside him. Sam wasn't sure if it was from the werewolf blood or from Andrew's attempts to cure him.

"That only helps if we know where to look. I hate to admit it but we need Derek's help on this one," Dean growled. Frustrated, he ran his hands over his face, rubbing hard. When that didn't really help he turned away from the water to face his brother. For the first time that day he took in Sam's appearance. Damn but he looked old and washed out. The frustration increased as he realized he'd been pushing his brother farther than he should have. "Get back in the car. We'll be there in a few minutes."

Sam considered arguing, for all of two seconds. Giving in, he pushed his weary body away from the side of the car, opened the door and slumped in the passenger seat. Wearily, Sam reached over to pull the door closed only to find that Dean had beat him to it. Looking up through the passenger window at his big brother's troubled face Sam realized he must look worse than he felt. Damn it.

Ashamed of his weakness, Sam's eyes dropped from Dean's intent gaze. He looked down at his hands, sitting limp in his lap, anything than to see the concern in his brother's blue-grey eyes. All ready, Sam's eyes were struggling to slam shut on him. Damn but he hated being this useless. Then he heard the driver's side door open and Dean plop into the seat beside him.

"I'm sorry," Dean grated. "I shouldn't have dragged you all over town without a better plan in mind."

"It's okay," Sam responded automatically. It freaked him out that Dean was saying he was sorry, for anything. It just wasn't something his older brother generally did. A quick side-long glance at Dean's face as he reached forward to turn the car on, showed a much older face than Sam was used to seeing. Dean was ever-present in his life. From Sam's earliest memories Dean had always been there, taking care of him, giving him the last of the cereal while he went without. It had never really seemed possible that Dean would ever age. Looking at him now, in the harsh light of the dashboard, a chill passed through Sam's soul.

"No, Sam, it's not okay. I'm worried about Nick. I care about whether we find him or not. But, I'm scared to death for you. I can't do anything about what's been done to you. I don't know how. But I can find Nick. I guess I've been overcompensating again," Dean said as he turned the engine over and put the heat on full blast. The last thing he needed was for Sam to get sick or something.

Wow. Sam turned in his seat to look at his brother full on. Dean was staring out the windshield of the Impala. There was nothing there but it seemed to hold the secrets of the world for the older Winchester. Dean was looking intently out the window. Sam had the feeling he was just trying to keep from looking at him. Dean was embarrassed by his outburst. A slow smile made its way across Sam's weary face.

"It's okay, Dean, we'll figure this out," Sam said. He half hoped Dean would look at him, to complete the chick flick moment. That didn't happen. Dean had bared as much of his soul as he was going to. Silence filled the interior of the car. The only sound was from the heater pumping out air.

Slowly the heat soaked into Sam's exhausted body. That, combined with the silence, did him in. Slowly his head tilted to the side and rested against the headrest. Then he was sound asleep. Grumbling under his breath, Dean pulled a blanket out of the back seat and wrapped it around his too tall brother. While he was at it, he casually brushed a tear off of his left cheek.

OOOOO

Pulling up in front of the Legacy house, Dean had expected the place to be dark. It was nearly one o'clock in the morning. Surely the older people in the house would be asleep. He was wrong. As soon as he threw the car into park and turned the lights off, the front door flew open and Bobby came clomping down the stairs. From the look on his face he wasn't too damned happy.

"About time," Bobby growled as Dean climbed out of the car. Sam was still asleep in the passenger side. Walking around the vehicle, Dean glanced up at the older man standing half way up the stairs. Bobby looked pissed.

"Did we have a curfew?" Dean grated back as he carefully opened the door to keep Sam from falling. He caught hold of Sam's shoulder and gently shook it.

"What did you find?" Derek asked as he stepped out of the front door. He'd been watching Bobby stew most of the day and wanted to avoid the inevitable clash.

"A whole lot of nothing," Dean admitted as he gently pulled Sam out of the car and guided him up the stairs. Sam was still partially asleep and was definitely lacking his usual coordination. Usually Dean had to drink a lot to be this bad. Under other circumstances his brother's predicament would have been funny.

"What do you expect, ya idiot?" Bobby growled as he caught Sam's other arm and helped to get the stumbling young man up the stairs. "This ain't our town."

"Leave him alone, Bobby," Sam said. He tried to put as much strength as he could into his voice but it came out low, barely above a whisper. Damn but he needed to get some sleep.

Bobby grumbled under his breath for a few moments until they got Sam up the steps into the front door. Dean was only slightly surprised at this point to find that everyone else was standing in the foyer, waiting for them. He could see the questions and concerns on each face but all he wanted to do at the moment was to get Sam up to bed. And maybe himself, Dean was suddenly very tired too.

"We'll talk in the morning," Derek said, forestalling any further questions. "I think we all could use some sleep."

Gratefully, Dean allowed Bobby to help him get Sam up the stairs to their bedroom. In a matter of moments both Winchesters were sound sleep. Shaking his head, Bobby quietly left the room and headed for his own. He had a few calls to make before morning.

OOOOO

If felt like someone had thrown Nick onto a glacier and left him there for the night. Forcing his consciousness to the surface of his mind, Nick heard his teeth chattering. Damn but it was cold. Slowly, he opened his eyes to blink rapidly in the darkness.

"What the hell?" Nick croaked as he took in the same room. He had expected to find that he hadn't been rescued but what he hadn't expected was to discover that he was lying on the table naked. Fear spiked through his mind and body. That fear got worse as a dark shadow beside the fireplace disengaged itself from the wall and moved toward him. The embers in the fireplace didn't put out much light, just a red haze.

Frantically, Nick struggled against his restraints, trying to get loose as the shadow continued to move toward him. As it got closer, he recognized Marcus's sister. The red light reflected slightly off her pale features as she opened her mouth and bared her fangs. The fear turned to terror. The terror was quickly replaced by reason. Terror wasn't going to help him. Taking three quick, calming breaths, Nick tried to think his way out of this. Nick stopped struggling. It was only making him weaker. He knew to get out of here he was going to need all the strength he could muster.

"What do you want?" Nick grated through clenched teeth. He hated lying here naked, completely defenceless against the female vampire. He hated even more what he knew was probably about to happen. Nick wasn't afraid of many things, but since being fed on twice by Alex, the slow smothering that accompanied the process was almost debilitating with fear.

"I haven't decided yet," the vampire purred. Gracefully, she sat on the table beside him. Her long nailed finger ran from his chest down below his waist. Shivers of revulsion followed her passage but otherwise Nick held himself still. She wanted a reaction of fear or lust. He wasn't going to give her either.

Idly, the vampire played with Nick's genitals, still trying to illicit a response. She was somewhat disappointed that she didn't get one. Glancing up at the human's face, she found that he wasn't even looking at her. He was staring into space directly above his head. Well, she'd dealt with difficult customers before. Grinning widely, she moved down, leaned over and bared her fangs again. This time she sank her teeth into the large vein just above his penis.

The shock of the pain and the location sent shockwaves of pain through Nick's body. He gasped and automatically tried to fight back. The vampire grabbed hold of his hips, sinking her claws into the skin covering them to hold him in place. She revelled in the flavour of his blood as it flowed into her mouth and the pained gasping sounds he was making.

Nick's world contacted to the embers of pain flashing through his groin. The eight points of her fingers digging into his skin were distant memories as the agony from the bite travelled through his groin, down his legs and up into his stomach. Struggling was no longer a possibility as he struggled to drawn breath around the unbelievable pain. Grunts and moans were the only sounds he was able to make and even those weren't made consciously.

The darkness of the cave was invading his mind. The red from the fire was filling his vision as the pain rolled through the rest of his body. Nick's eyes clamped shut, his teeth ground together as the agony intensified. Then the darkness was complete and he passed out.

It took every ounce of will Lily possessed to keep from completely draining the man. Damn but he tasted good! Reluctantly, she released her hold on his frail, pale body and sat up, wiping blood from her mouth and sucking on her fingers. Mmmmm, so good. Absently, she reached down and pressed on the puncture wounds on the human's lower abdomen, forcing new blood up through the ragged holes. Bending over, she lapped the blood up, ecstasy passing through her body.

"You didn't kill him, did you?" Marcus asked from the chamber entrance. He held a tray with food, water and a few other necessities contained on top of it. He'd paused when he'd entered, disbelief spreading through his body. In all the centuries they'd spent together, his sister had never disobeyed him. She was too afraid of him. Apparently he'd found her weakness.

"No," Lily purred as she sat back up, her hands running over Nick's cold body. The human was still alive but just barely. He'd progressed past the point where he shivered. His core temperature had dropped too far for that. While it was a real concern if they wanted to keep him alive, Lily didn't think that was what her brother had planned for the man anyway. "But I will if you let me."

"No, not yet. I want him to suffer before I transform him," Marcus grated. With a hiss, he sent his sister scurrying across to the furthest wall. Still grumbling under his breath, Marcus moved over to the dying human. With disgust he took in the man's present state of undress and the wounds that Lily had inflicted on him. An angry glance at his sister and Lily quickly left the room. Pausing long enough to stoke the fire, Marcus returned to his human charge. Thanks to his sister he might have to transform Nick sooner than he'd planned.

Growling, Marcus set the tray down beside Nick's still form. Casually he ripped through the bindings and did a cursory examination. The wound in the man's groin was messy. Lily had been enjoying herself a little too much. With a little displeasure, he brought his own wrist up to his mouth and broke the skin. Picking Nick's head up, he forced his bleeding wrist between the human's slightly parted lips. He didn't want to turn him yet but he had to keep him alive. The fastest, easiest way to do that was to give him some of his own blood to help him heal.

At first Nick didn't respond to the fluid dripping into his mouth. Unconscious, he didn't know enough to pull away or drink. Just as his mouth filled to the point where he was going to inhale the blood into his lungs, Nick convulsively swallowed. The hot, metallic liquid flowed through his body, spreading warmth as it went. Instinctively, Nick caught hold of Marcus's arm, pulling the wound further into his mouth as he hungrily sucked.

Feeling his life force being sucked out of his arm, Marcus groaned in pleasure. It didn't matter if it was a man or woman that was drawing his blood, the sensation of ecstasy was the same. It was almost as good as it felt when he drained a bleeder. Almost. Shaking himself out of his revere, Marcus none too gently pulled his arm away from Nick. All ready the human's color was better although Marcus imagined the pain hadn't decreased much. Lily had made sure that she'd inflicted the greatest amount of pain when she'd chosen her site to bite him. Trust his sister to know that. Grinning, Marcus pulled out a bottle of alcohol off the tray.

"This might hurt just a little bit," the head vampire said, his fangs showing as he smiled a little larger. Casually, he tilted the bottle over the bite mark, allowing the amber liquid to pour down over the twin puncture wounds. The reaction was almost instantaneous. Nick's body stiffened as the new pain registered. A low, keening wail escaped Nick's tightly drawn lips. The man began to wake up, his breathing hitching and the muscles in his abdomen starting to spasm in response to the frantic impulses passing down his nerve endings. Almost regrettably, Marcus stopped the liquor, placed the bottle on the ground beside the bed and placed a clean cloth on the wound.

"You'll appreciate this later on," Marcus purred as he pressed on the bite mark, his fingers finding the twin punctures, almost exploring them in his intensity. The wail turned to a scream and then Nick's body went completely lax as his mind shut down again in an attempt to protect his sanity.

"Well now, it wasn't nearly that bad," Marcus said as he turned his attention to the cuts left by his sister's finger nails. "You're going to have to buck up there, Nick. Otherwise you'll never survive everything I have planned for you."


	7. Chapter 7

_Thank you very much for your wonderful reviews. It certainly helps to keep me motivated to update! Enjoy the new chapter, I hope. _

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SEVEN

Five hours after he laid his head on the pillow, Dean Winchester's eyes slammed open. It took a dizzying few seconds to figure out where he was. It seemed a little ironic given his usually nomadic lifestyle to be lost by waking up in the same room more than once. Turning his head to the right, he found Sam still asleep. In the light filtering through the heavy, overdone curtains, Sam looked very young. Looking at him, Dean was reminded of the kid brother that depended on him for everything while they were growing up.

"What do I do now?" Dean asked quietly. Even after the hours of sleep they'd managed so far, Sam appeared tired, his face almost gaunt looking in his exhaustion. Every fibre of Dean's being was telling him to protect his brother, just as he always has. Another, newer part was beating through his body, trying to get him to go look for Nick, even if he had to do it alone. When had the Legacy member become the equivalent of his brother? Dean wasn't sure. But now that it was a reality, there wasn't a lot he could do about it.

"Shut up and let me sleep some more," Sam responded, his eyes still closed. As much as he wanted to jump out of bed and begin the search anew, he knew his body wasn't going to let him. He didn't want Dean to head out alone. All he needed was another hour or two. Hopefully.

"We should start looking again," Dean said as he sat up in bed. It was the last thing he felt like doing at the moment. As much as he hated to admit it, Dean Winchester was getting older. Today he felt every one of his years plus another twenty. More sleep seemed like a wonderful idea.

"Just give me two more hours," Sam murmured as he rolled over onto his side, his back toward his brother. He curled up, drawing his knees close to his stomach.

As much as Dean wanted to get going, he couldn't face forcing his brother out of bed. Sam looked so young and vulnerable at the moment. He needed to let Sam recover a little more before dragging him all over hell again. Sighing, Dean slumped back onto his side of the bed, his right arm coming up to lie across his eyes. Just a little more time, then they'd get back to the search for Nick.

OOOOO

"Get up sleepy heads," Bobby growled as he burst through the bedroom door. It was nearly ten o'clock in the morning. Derek had wanted him to leave the two men sleeping but Bobby had other plans. He should have been surprised to find both Winchesters still sound asleep but somehow he just wasn't. The brothers had been through hell and back and not that long ago.

"Go away," Dean mumbled as he rolled onto his side, the top of his head coming to rest against Sam's back. He'd only been asleep for a few minutes, hadn't he?

"Get up!" Bobby roared. His voice sounded much angrier than he actually was but it had the desired effect. Both Winchesters sat bolt upright in bed, blinking the sleep out of their eyes as they slid their legs out from under the blankets and sat up on either side of the bed. "That's better. Get cleaned up and meet me in the kitchen. We have a busy day ahead of us."

Without waiting for a reply, Bobby turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him. Now that the brothers were sitting up, he knew they wouldn't go back to bed. If they did, he'd be back.

OOOOO

Feeling a little better after a shower and fresh clothes, the brothers made their way into the kitchen. Walking in the door, they found a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs, hash browns, ham and orange juice waiting for them. Sitting on the other side of the counter were Bobby and Jacob. Both men were cradling a mug of coffee while they waited. There was a companionable silence hanging between the two men. When had that happened?

"Morning," Sam said as he settled into the nearest chair and dug into the food. While it wasn't his usual breakfast of choice, pancakes, it was the best looking food he'd seen in a while. He hardly came up for air between forkfuls.

"Morning," Bobby responded as he watched Dean sit beside his brother and similarly attack his plate. He didn't bother talking to the older man. He knew time was of the essence. How had he managed to sleep that long? "Once you two are fed, we're heading back into the city. I spent hours yesterday calling all the hunters I have phone numbers for and ones that I had to get the numbers for from other hunters. I got some really good leads to follow up on to find the vampire nest."

"Where are they?" Dean asked around a mouthful of food. While his right hand continued to direct food into his mouth, Dean's other hand caught hold of the map Bobby offered to him and held it in front of him so he could scan it. "We checked two of these yesterday. There was nothing. These other ones look promising though."

"I'm glad you approve," Bobby stated somewhat sarcastically. He glanced up as Andrew came into the room, a syringe in hand. Instantly on guard, Dean turned to see who was there. He considered tackling the man to keep him away from his brother but changed his mind. Andrew was many things but an enemy wasn't one of them.

"You missed your shots yesterday," Andrew said by way of greeting. His social graces were only marginal but he made up for them with his scientific skills. Without waiting for Sam's response, Andrew stepped toward him and jabbed the needle into his right bicep. "You need to make sure you come back before midnight tonight."

"Ow!" Sam yelped as the liquid was squeezed into his muscle. Not only did it burn but it hurt like hell too. It felt like the kid had injected ounces of liquid instead of just a small amount. Instinctively, the youngest Winchester rubbed his right arm with his left hand, casting a recriminating look at the thin man behind and beside him. A momentary urge to beat the man to a pulp played through his mind.

"Sorry. I didn't want you to get away from me again," Andrew stated. There wasn't any apology in his voice, belaying his words. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Sam responded automatically as he turned back to his food. The sooner they finished eating the sooner they could get away from the mad scientist and his needles.

"I doubt that but okay, whatever you say," Andrew responded as he turned to leave. "Just remember to be back by midnight, unless you like the werewolf blood, of course."

"I'll be here," Sam grated as he glanced at his brother. Dean looked ready to rip the man limb from limb. Instead, he too returned his attention back to his food.

"How many cars are we using?" Dean asked as he continued to fork food into his mouth.

"Two. There're still eight places on this list. Most of them are isolated and will take a while to search so we'd be better off if we split up. I hear Nick has a 60's Mustang that's wasting away in the garage," Bobby responded. "You and Sam will take half the list, Jacob and I will take the other half."

"Are you sure you're feeling up to this?" Dean asked the older man. He wanted to ask Sam but knew his kid brother would take the question the wrong way. He wasn't insinuating that Sam was weak or useless. He was just worried about him.

"Don't get me started, idjit," Bobby growled. He'd been examining young Sam out of the corner of his eye and didn't much like what he saw. The kid looked old and tired but he knew there was no way they'd be able to leave him behind without sedating him, heavily. While the idea was appealing in some forms, he knew the kid would never forgive him.

"I've marked a restaurant on your map. We'll meet there at 3 pm to compare notes before we continue. Phone us if anything comes up," Jacob said as he stood up. While he moved, the Frankfurt Legacy member tried to hide just how sore his side was. Broken ribs sucked when you didn't have the time to let them heal. Derrick was all ready out on the streets, trying to run down some of his own leads. He too would meet them at the restaurant.

"Sure thing," Dean responded around yet another mouth full of food. The plate was nearly empty. A quick glance at his brother showed that he too was nearly done. Wolfing down food wasn't going to help the digestion. Dean knew he'd need to stop and eat something else before too long but at least this would get them off the island.

OOOOO

The first place was creepy as hell but didn't yield a vampire nest. The second place too was a dud. By three o'clock the Winchester brothers were starting to feel a little dispirited. Silently following his brother's laconic directions, Dean steered the Impala through the streets of San Francisco. In all the years of hunting, there hadn't been many times that Dean had come to the city. If he were a different person, he might have wanted to spend some time doing the tourist thing. But, this was Dean Winchester. The only thing he was interested in was finding the vampires and killing each and every one of them.

Just as Dean pulled up out front of the restaurant, a red '60's Mustang convertible came down the other side of the street. While he admired the two door power car, Dean was mildly surprised to find that at the wheel was Bobby. The older hunter had a rare grin on his face. Clearly he was enjoying driving Nick's car.

"He looks happy," Sam stated as he climbed out the passenger door. There was almost a spring in the older hunter's step as he jaywalked across the street, followed shortly by Jacob.

"I wonder what he's been smoking," Dean responded. He stepped around onto the sidewalk to await the two older men. It was a rare thing seeing Bobby in a good mood. He almost found it a little on the creepy side.

OOOOO

Situated in a large table by the front window, the four paranormal hunters compared notes after having ordered their meals. Dean, of course, ordered a loaded cheeseburger with fries. Sam had gone for a fancy salad which elicited a snicker from his older brother. Bobby stuck to a hamburger as well, while Jacob went for a pasta dish.

"We've covered the two closest ones without any luck," Dean stated after the waitress left. She'd filled all four mugs with steaming hot coffee after taking their food orders. Wrapping his hands around the ceramic vessel, Sam relished the heat for a few moments before taking a long, healthy swig. During the last search he'd started to feel a little weak. He hoped desperately the strong liquid would help to revive him. They still had two more places to look at.

"Were you taking a coffee break or two?" Bobby responded. "We've searched all the places on our list. Give us one of yours and we'll all be able to get back to the island at a decent time."

Sam nearly choked on the coffee. It almost sounded like the older hunter was looking forward to returning to the Legacy house. He looked over the rim of his mug before he set it down and scanned the older man's face. For the first time since John Winchester died, Bobby looked almost happy. It was unsettling to see. One of the few constants in the Winchester's lives was that Bobby was in a perpetual bad mood.

"Whatever you say," Dean said as he ripped the bottom address off his list and handed it over. "Knock yourself out."

The door to the restaurant opened and Derek stepped inside. Locating the others, he headed for the table and sat in the nearest chair. A great deal of time was spent catching up. By then their meals were coming out of the kitchen. All Derek wanted was a cup of coffee, which he'd promptly received from the waitress.

"So now there's four places left to search," Dean summarized. His burger was wonderful, as most of them were. He glanced from Derek to Sam. His kid brother was playing with his salad. From the looks of things he'd eaten only a few bites. Frowning, he nudged Sam and nodded toward his food. Dragging his eyes away from the lettuce and vegetables, Sam picked up on what Dean was trying to tell him. With a deep sigh, the youngest Winchester forced a forkful of salad into his mouth.

"Yes," Derek responded. He was pouring over Bobby's map, figuring out where the locations were.

"That leaves two each," Bobby said as he handed Dean back his ripped piece of paper. Let the boys deal with that one at least they knew where the hell it was.

"Do you want to ride with us?" Jacob asked Derek. He could see that the older man was feeling a little left out but there was no way in hell that he was going to let the San Francisco house precept go searching alone. The image of Derek trying to climb into the back seat of the Mustang almost made him smile.

"Thanks but I have a few more people to talk to," Derek responded. He looked around at the men at the table. If anyone could find Nick, it would be them. "Let's get going."

OOOOO

The first thing Nick became aware of was that he was in incredible pain. The second thing that presented itself was that he had a really foul taste in his mouth. Tremors of revulsion passed through his entire body. It only made the pain that much worse. Unconsciously gritting his teeth, the ex-SEAL forced his eyes open. He expected to find darkness the same as he'd found the last two times. Instead, Nick blinked in the bright light. A few feet away a gas lantern burned brightly.

"About time you woke up," Marcus grated. The vampire moved into Nick's line of sight. The vampire still looked like a teenage boy with blond hair and blue eyes. If Nick didn't know that he was an immortal blood sucker, he would have felt protective toward the kid. All he felt now, though was a steadily growing block of fear in his stomach.

"Go to hell," Nick responded, his voice very low and raspy. Marcus bent over Nick, blocking the light out of his eyes. He slipped an ice cold hand under the human's head and brought a container to his lips. Thirsty beyond imagining, Nick still turned his head away. If Marcus was offering it to him, chances were there was an ulterior motive involved.

"Well, now. I guess I wouldn't trust me either," Marcus said, his voice as smooth as silk. "The choice is yours. You can drink the liquid I'm offering you or you can die sooner than I'd planned."

Glaring up at the vampire still hovering over him, Nick considered his options. He knew that Derek, Sam and Dean were looking for him. Wherever this was, it was going to take time to find it. Time was something Nick knew he didn't have. He was injured, dehydrated and hungry. He needed to find a way to give them more time. Gritting his teeth even harder, Nick turned his head back toward the container.

"Good choice," Marcus stated. He held it up to Nick's lips and tilted it enough for some of the fluid to run into his throat. The foul taste seemed impervious to the liquid. While the human drank, Marcus spent the time checking out his specimen a little closer. Nick was trying very hard to not move. The wound Lily had inflicted on him was turning red and puffy despite his earlier ministrations. He was mildly amused by just how dirty his sister's mouth really was. He supposed he should give the man some clothes. As he watched, a shiver passed through Nick's body, followed immediately by goose bumps that rose on the man's pale skin. A low moan issued from Nick as he struggled to not choke on the liquid that tasted suspiciously like Gatorade.

"That hurts does it?" Marcus asked. The liquid drained, he put Nick's head down and pulled the container away and set it down on the ground. The moan Nick had made fascinated Marcus. He liked the sound of it and wanted to hear more. While he was a vampire, Marcus really wasn't that particularly sadistic. Apparently Nick brought the urge out in him. His earlier scream also amused the hell out of him. Turning his attention from the man's head and torso, Marcus moved closer to his sister's bite.

"Don't touch me," Nick grated as he suspiciously watched what the vampire was doing. He still couldn't move. Any movement at all caused excruciating pain to radiate from his groin. Damn he wanted to get the hell out of here. With a detached fascination, he watched as Marcus reached out with one finger to prod the wound. Nick's reaction was immediate and intense.

As the pain registered in the damaged nerve endings Nick's brain switched into overload. His back arched off the table. His eyes clenched as tightly as his teeth. Sweat broke out over every inch of skin and his breathing became shallow and hitched. Otherwise, though, Nick was silent. Not what Marcus wanted.

Casually, the vampire pushed a little harder. A clear liquid began to squish up through the twin holes. Infection was all ready setting in. A low scream issued from Nick as the new pain blossomed and spread. It was muffled though through his clenched teeth.

"Well, I guess I'm going to have to do something about that if I want you to stay with us," Marcus purred. A second finger joined the first as Marcus added more pressure. The muffled scream became much clearer as Nick struggled weakly to pull his body away from the vampire. The agony was beyond imagining.

Releasing the pressure, Marcus brought a sharp finger nail toward the puncture wounds. Grinning, he dragged it across the area, cutting deeply into the inflamed skin. Still grinning, he placed fingers on either side of the cut and squeezed.

Unable to handle it any longer, Nick once more retreated into darkness. He could only take so much and keep his sanity intact. His last thought was that the others were taking their time in finding him. He didn't know how much more of this he was going to be able to take.

"You're not much fun," Marcus said. He continued to squeeze the skin on either side of the cut. He was fascinated by the amount of infection he was pulling out of it. Once the liquid turned red, he wiped absently at the wound and threw the rag on the fire still burning a few feet away. The smell was sickening as the cloth burned but he ignored it as he used a fresh, clean rag to finish with the wound. Nick was no good to him if he died from infection.

Picking up the liquor bottle from its position on the floor, Marcus poured its contents over the much larger wound. Even unconscious, Nick's breathing became more laboured and his muscles flinched in response to the pain. Small moans escaped from Nick's still clenched teeth as Marcus let the alcohol sit in the wound, the better to clean it after all.

When the muscles stopped responding but remained clenched tight as a fist, Marcus wiped the alcohol away and taped a clean bandage over the site. Glancing at the pale, sweat slick face of his human, Marcus decided clothes or at least blankets were definitely in order. As handsome as Nick was, Marcus really didn't want to stare at his naked body any longer. Sadistic Marcus may be toward the man but he was not into men in any other capacity. Humming quietly to himself, Marcus picked up the items he'd brought last time and left the chamber. He knew exactly where to find clothes that would fit the man. Then he'd move onto more interesting pursuits.


	8. Chapter 8

_Hi. No, I haven't forgotten about this story. I promise I'll finish it, maybe sooner than I'd planned but I will finish it. Now that it's spring I'm just finding it harder to concentrate on writing. I'll get better._

_Thanks for sticking with me. It'll be worth your while, I hope!!!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER EIGHT

The searching so far was fruitless. Dean could barely contain his anger and frustration. There was only one more place on their list. Beside him in the passenger seat, Sam was talking to Bobby on his cell. From this side of the conversation, it seemed that the older hunter was having similar luck. The thought did little to improve Dean's bad mood.

The world outside the Impala had gone dark. Not only had night fallen but the area they were in was only sparsely inhabited. Thanks to Sam's directions, they were way the hell up in the hills somewhere. The last house they'd passed with lights on had been ten minutes ago.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Dean asked once Sam snapped his cell shut.

"That's what the directions say," Sam responded. He tried to not sound defensive. His brother's mood had gone downhill all day, as had his own. Snapping at each other sure the hell wasn't going to help. "It should be just around this bend on the right hand side."

"On the right hand side is the mountain," Dean muttered. He knew his anger shouldn't be directed at his brother. Sam just happened to be an easy target at the moment. Where the hell was Nick?

"Well, I'm not entirely sure if it's actually considered a mountain but it's certainly a big hill," Sam responded. In the light of a full moon he could just make out the ridge of the hill off to their right. Dean was right. It was pretty mountainous looking from here. The place they were going to had to be between the road and the edge of the hill. There wasn't a lot of room so the place couldn't be huge. He hoped.

"Whatever," Dean grated. He half expected a deer or a werewolf or a mountain lion to jump out as the headlights panned around the turn. Driving the car, the highlights blinded Dean to pretty much everything around them. All he could clearly see was the half-heartedly mowed lawn on his left hand side and the tall weeds that ran up to above the passenger side windows on the right. Where ever the hell they were going it seemed like no one had been home for quite some time. That was a good sign.

"So what did Bobby say?" Dean asked in an attempt to distract himself from his anger. Before Sam had a chance to answer, the weeds on the right suddenly gave way to a large, ornate metal gate. Slowing down, he carefully pulled his beloved Impala to a stop in front of them.

"He and Jacob have finished their list. They're on their way here but it's going to take a while," Sam said as he gazed out the windshield at the gates. The most obvious thing was the large, new chain and padlock that was locked and spanned the two gates. Glancing out the passenger side window, he saw that the metal fence actually ran the length of the property, at least for as far as he could see, but it was mostly hidden in the weeds.

"Great, I feel more secure all ready," Dean muttered. The elder Winchester climbed out of the car and paced toward the gate. The chain kept them from driving their car in but there was enough of the gap that they would be able to climb through. Experimentally, he pulled on the padlock, just in case. No such luck.

Sam had all ready climbed out of the passenger side and moved to the trunk of the Impala. He was pulling flashlights, stakes, holy water and other things he thought they might need out of the secret compartment. He wasn't going to go into this place unprepared. The last thing he did was change the battery in his cell phone. He kept a couple charged up at all times. The last thing either of them needed was to be stuck in a tight spot with a dead battery.

"Here," Sam said as he tossed a battery at his older brother. Dean had gotten tired of looking through the dense weeds on the other side of the gates and had moved to join his brother. Catching the battery, Dean quickly changed his as well. Then he slipped the phone into the case on his belt. He accepted the other things Sam was shoving into his hands.

"Are you planning on fighting an army?" Dean asked, only half joking. He appreciated his brother's streak of over preparedness. It was better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. Especially when dealing with an unknown number of vampires. "Let's go."

OOOOO

Nick wasn't getting any better. It was frustrating the hell out of Marcus. After all the attention he'd lavished on the ill man, doing things that he wouldn't do for any other piece of meat and he had the audacity to not improve. Huffing a breath out through his nose, Marcus turned toward the too pale, sweat slicked face.

"Well, I suppose I don't have much of a choice now," Marcus muttered to himself. Nick's life signs were weakening. His sister had drawn too much blood and left too much infection behind. Sighing again, Marcus pulled on the clothes he'd found. They were a little big but that suited his purposes just fine. He was sure Nick appreciated it as well as he pulled the pants up into place. As soon as the waist touched the bite, his body stiffened in agony.

"Okay, well, I guess that's not such a good idea after all," Marcus said as he pulled the waist band down below the bite. Still frustrated, Marcus finished dressing the man and then sat on the edge of the alter he was on. Looking down at Nick's pale face, he contemplated the options. None of them were what he wanted. Damn her anyway.

With more force than he'd intended, Marcus pulled Nick up by the shoulder and sank his teeth into the man's neck. As he drained the man's life blood, he cursed his sister. He'd wanted to torture the man some more before turning him. All the wonderful things he was going to do while Nick was human went up in smoke.

While he drank, Marcus could feel Nick's life slipping away. Then, just before the human's heart stopped, he opened his wrist and forced it between the man's lips. His blood trickled onto Nick's tongue and down his throat but he didn't react. The thought that maybe he'd waited too long, that maybe Nick was too weak flashed through the blond vampire's mind. Then Nick swallowed.

"Much better," Marcus said. It was the only way to keep the man. It was the only way he was going to be able to continue to exact his revenge. After Nick had fed the first time it was just going to be a little bit harder. Patiently Marcus waited while the man drank and drank. Yep, this was going to take a while.

OOOOO

Thanks to the full moon the brothers were able to search most of the grounds without using their flashlights. The things were very useful but also drew every form of evil right to them. The longer they could do without them the better chance they had of coming up on the nest while the vampires were still unawares. That was the plan anyway.

All around the now broken arching driveway the weeds grew about chest deep. Sam was amazed that no one had complained about the property and gotten the city involved in its clean up. The main house was impressive in its time. Now, however, it appeared to have been target practice for many a rock. The windows in the front of the three story building were smashed. A few of them had boards placed over them but most didn't. The resulting reflections from the moon light on the broken panes of glass were eerie, almost as if the building were glaring at them.

Also on the property were a large three car garage and a smaller building Sam had spied at the back of the house. He assumed it was either a pool house or a guest quarters. There wasn't enough light, though, for him to be sure.

"What are the chances there's something skulking around in these weeds, watching us?" Dean said quietly to his brother. The Winchesters had automatically moved into their usual search formation. Dean was toward the front, Sam a few feet behind, protecting the rear, and a little to the right. Dean kept a close eye on the house and the weeds. Either one could prove to be dangerous.

"Better than average," Sam responded. He had the distinct impression that they were being watched. Try as he might, though, he couldn't figure out exactly from where. There were too many possibilities. Giving in to the need to see things better, Sam flicked on his flashlight and panned it around. Nothing jumped out at him.

"Let's check the house first, then we'll do the outside," Dean suggested. He wanted to check the structure first because it gave him the creeps. The creeps were always a pretty good indication that there was something there.

"Lead the way," Sam said as he scanned the general area with his flashlight. The house gave him the creeps too.

Taking a deep breath, Dean carefully mounted the wooden steps. As the older Winchester placed his foot on the step, the rotten wood gave way, just about sending him tumbling into the next three steps. Automatically, Dean reached out with the hand that wasn't holding a gun to stop his fall. With a loud crack, his hand passed through the wood of the third step and he went down.

"Dean!" Sam cried as he watched his brother fall into the disintegrating stairs. He hoped Dean would be more frustrated than hurt. With the long drive way and Sam's weakened state, he wasn't sure if he could carry his brother all the way back to the car.

"Damn it!" Dean growled as he struggled to extract himself out of the splintered wood. Apparently the house had a problem with termites. He tried to ignore the pain that was shooting up his right wrist whenever he moved. "Damn it all to hell."

"Are you okay?" Sam asked as he caught hold of his brother's nearest arm and tried to help extricate him from the rubble of the steps. Every time Dean touched the steps or the deck above it the wood disintegrated. If it wasn't for the fact that the resulting splinters were starting to embed themselves into Dean's arms and hands, it would have been almost comical.

"I'm great," Dean grated as he finally, with assistance from Sam, reached his feet. His breath was coming in great huffs while he tried to collect his composure. Absently, he tried to wipe the blood from the palms of his hands onto his jeans. In order to do this, he had to shift the gun in his hand from one hand to the other.

"Do you still think someone might be in the house?" Sam asked, trying to stifle the urge to laugh. His brother looked so very unhappy while he continued to extricate himself from the still crumbling steps.

"Not unless they flew," Dean grunted. Shaking his leg, Dean knocked off what was left of the top step and moved beyond the wreckage. His hands were stinging from the numerous splinters embedded in them, while his wrist shot pains up to his elbow. Ignoring his brother, Dean proceeded to paced around the right side of the house. He wanted to make sure that if anyone had gotten inside that he would know about it. There was something about this whole place that made him believe that they'd found what they were looking for. If only they could find it.

OOOOO

The world came back to Nick slowly. The first thing he was aware of was the sensation of floating. He could feel the world around him swaying with a comforting slow motion. It took everything he had to force his mind out of the comforting darkness toward the light. The ex-SEAL expected pain and nausea to assail him as he moved closer to consciousness. He remembered how he'd been injured and the pain that had accompanied it.

It was with great shock, therefore, that Nick opened his eyes to find that he felt fine, absolutely fine. In fact, he felt better than fine. It only took a moment to take in the cave, the fire, the alter he was lying on. There was no Lily, no Marcus. Everything else was the same. What the hell? How long had he been unconscious?

Carefully, just in case he was imagining his good health, Nick tried to sit up. He expected to find that he was still tied down. That would only make sense. Instead, he sat up and was able to swing his legs over the side of the alter, closest to the entrance. He was only marginally aware of the fact that he was wearing clothes. All Nick's attention was centered on getting the hell out of here while he was still healthy enough to do it.

In seconds he was by the doorway. Cautiously, he poked his head outside the door and checked both ways on the corridor that ran outside. There wasn't a lot of light to help him see but Nick KNEW there wasn't anyone there. Dimly, Nick wondered why this was so easy. Choosing an arbitrary direction, Nick headed off to the right.


	9. Chapter 9

_I know, I know! Better late than never. I hope you enjoy it!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER NINE

Within a hundred yards of the cave he'd been in, Nick hadn't seen a single person. He was grateful for that as he continued to pad down the earthen corridor. While he moved he felt the surface under his fingers, trailing along the right hand wall. He could smell the earth, mold, moisture and something else he couldn't quite place. The air around him was still but he felt changes in temperature. In one foot it would be hot and humid, the next would be cold.

The longer Nick moved, the more he noticed that his stomach was starting to clench and ache. He assumed it was because he hadn't eaten for God knew how long. It could also be because he hadn't had had anything to drink lately either. Wrapping his left arm across his midsection, Nick continued on.

Twenty feet later, the ache was becoming more pronounced. Steeling himself against the discomfort, Nick put one foot in front of the other. He needed to get the hell out of here. By now the Winchesters and his friends at the Legacy house must be frantic. Forcing a breath out, hoping it would relieve some of the tight muscles in his stomach, Nick proceeded.

So far the corridor had been featureless. The seamless quality of the walls was getting on Nick's nerves. It just felt wrong. Still, he turned his mind to the feel under his fingers. It distracted him from the increasing pain and discomfort from his stomach. Then his legs started to feel weak and tingly. The pain in his gut got worse.

Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. Nick felt a cold sweat beading up on his forehead. A bead ran down the back of his neck, all the way down his spine, sending a deep chill through him. What the hell? After an eternity of putting one foot in front of the other, Nick felt his fingers lose contact with the corridor wall. There was a turn. Following it, he was nearly blinded by a dim light a few feet in front of him.

"What the hell is going on here?!" an angry voice boomed between Nick and the light source. Blinking rapidly, Nick tried to slide back around the corner, hoping against hope that he hadn't been seen. No such luck. Strong hands caught hold of him while Nick tried to break free. His limbs weren't cooperating.

"I thought he'd be out longer," Marcus answered from somewhere further away but directly ahead of Nick. "How are you feeling?"

"Get away from me!" Nick shouted as he continued to fight. The pain in his gut was getting worse, ruining his ability to consider pretty much anything else.

"You hungry yet?" Marcus persisted. The blond vampire's voice was closer. Then a cold hand touched Nick's forehead. Startled, Nick pulled back. His eyes had adjusted to the light but it didn't really help much. All he could see were random shadows, people moving around and darkened faces since the light was behind them.

Nick's stomach clenched tighter. With a grunt, Nick doubled over in response. The hands had hold of his arms, keeping him from wrapping them around his middle. Bile rose and then Nick was throwing up helplessly on the ground in front of his feet. Within moments he sank down to his knees. Every ounce of strength he'd had vanished with each stomach cramp.

"You need some blood. Bring him this way," Marcus said. Without bothering to see if his subordinates followed his directions, Marcus set off down the hallway. Not even daring to growl, the vampire wrapped an arm around Nick's abdomen and picked him up like a child picking up a kitten and draping it over their arm.

Completely helpless, all Nick could do was watch the ground go by. His stomach continued to spasm. He'd long since run out of anything but bile. The action of being carried left Nick slumped forward, his eyes could either be turned toward the floor or toward his own knees. Quickly though, Nick found it easier to close his eyes. The movement of the ground wasn't helping with the nausea.

"Put him in here," Marcus ordered. The vampire carrying Nick slipped past the ancient vampire and unceremoniously dumped the man onto a wooden cot. Nick barely even felt it, he was so miserable. It was as if every muscle in his body was starving for oxygen. His legs cramped up, as did his arms, torso and abdomen. A grunt escaped as Nick tried to ride out the intense discomfort.

"Here," Marcus said with disgust in his voice. Nonchalantly, he offered the Legacy member his wrist. He wasn't going to let Nick feed much, just enough to stop the horrific cramps. The lead vampire remembered all too well the intensity of discomfort the man was enduring.

Blinking his eyes, Nick tried to focus on what Marcus was offering him. It was really hard to concentrate on anything but his pain. Gasping again, Nick strained his eyes further until he saw the exposed wrist inches from his face. The pain vanished temporarily as the implications of what the vampire was offering him sank in. The nausea intensified. Swallowing quickly, Nick tried to pull away. _Oh God, oh God, oh God_ kept running through the Legacy member's mind. There was no way this could be real. At any moment he'd open his eyes and find himself in his own bed, having had a nightmare.

"It's only going to get worse if you don't feed," Marcus stated getting frustrated with the man. Yet Nick had enough strength left to turn away from him. Damn but the man was stubborn. It was one of the qualities Marcus appreciated about him. "Fine. I'll have to find something you will find more appetizing."

OOOOO

The Winchester brothers had searched every inch of the property to the best of their abilities. That was, except for the house. There wasn't a safe way to get inside. The steps on the back of it were in the same shape as the one that had sent Dean scrambling.

"How are we going to do this?" Sam asked as he stood beside his brother, staring up at the side of the house. The nearest window was just above Sam's head. Even if he broke it, he couldn't get inside it and there was nothing around to climb on. Carefully, he scanned the immediate area. Maybe he'd missed something.

"You're going to have to boost me," Dean stated. There was no way in hell he was going to be able to boost his taller, heavier brother so Sam was going to have to do the honours.

"Then how am I going to get in?" Sam countered. He was all for boosting his brother in through the window. What he wasn't willing to deal with was Dean being inside alone. The steps were out of the question and none of the other windows were any lower. That left Sam on the outside. He hated the idea.

"I'll see if I can lower something for you to climb up on," Dean stated. Looking around on the ground, Dean found a rock. "Step back."

Once they were both at a safe distance, Dean hurled the rock at the window. It exploded, sending shards of glass flying outside and inside. Dean was glad they'd stepped back otherwise they would have gotten hit. The rock had left a few jagged pieces still attached to the window frame. Picking the stone up again, Dean watched as his brother braced his back against the wall of the house, made a cup with his hands and prepared to push Dean up.

"I'll be right back," Dean assured him. As he stepped up and put his foot in his brother's hands, Dean could see the concern and fear burning through his brother's gray-blue eyes. "I promise."

"I'm going to hold you to that," Sam responded. Then he was lifting his brother up the side of the wall toward the window frame. Dean paused long enough to break the jagged pieces of glass out before he pulled himself up and over into the house.

It wasn't a particularly graceful entry. Dean tumbled into the room beyond the window. His side struck something hard and unforgiving. Pain shot through his body but Dean ignored it as he scrambled back up to his feet. Quickly, he took in his surroundings. It was a bedroom. He'd landed against an ornate, wooden bureau. His body had left a big smudge in the inch layer of dust that inhabited the surface of it.

"Damn," Dean breathed as he padded through the room. Other than the bureau and ornate bed frame, there was nothing else. Even the closet was empty. Glancing over his shoulder when he was headed toward the hallway, Dean saw that even his feet were leaving prints in the dust on the old wooden floor. They were the only prints visible. This room, anyway, was deserted.

The hallway wasn't any better. Looking both ways down the hall, Dean found more doors and a large open room he assumed was a den or family room. The air was very still, musty and hard to breathe. Dean could feel his sinuses filling and sand paper taking over his throat. Not one to usually have allergies, he knew things in here were bad. In their travels, he and his brother had been in some dirty, ugly places but for some reason this place was by far the worst.

A quick survey behind every door he could open, Dean found the odd pieces of furniture that looked like they'd been abandoned in the same place they'd sat since coming into the house. Clearly these people were not into interior decorating. Unfortunately, though, he didn't find anything that was going to help his brother get inside.

"This place has to have a basement. Maybe there will be something down there," Dean said to himself as he finished checking the rooms. At the end of the hall he found a set of stairs. One set led upwards, the other down. Bingo!! Cautiously, Dean followed the stairs into a deep, dark basement. It reminded him of the place in Germany. Images of men being stretched over racks, whipped and beaten played through his mind.

Reaching the bottom step, Dean pulled the flashlight out of his pocket and panned the beam around. The floor was made out of rocks, as were the walls. There was a hallway that led off to his right somewhere. On the left hand side there was just an empty, damp, creepy looking open space. The hallway it is.

The hallway wasn't an improvement to the open area. Panning the flashlight beam around, Dean found rooms with cell-like doors on them. Yep, this was a dungeon. Padding up to the first door, he scanned it with the flashlight only to find dark, familiar stains on the stones. On the far wall were metal rings like the kind that shackles could be attached to. A shudder passed through Dean. Then he had the feeling that he was being watched. Before he had an instant to respond, the world went black amid bright sparks of pain.

OOOOO

Nick was pacing around his cell. His legs were weak and his stomach turned with a mind of its own. But the nervous energy would not disappait. The gut wrenching pain took his breath away. He ignored it. The cell was small, damp and musty as hell. He could tell that people had spent too much time in here without water to wash with or food to eat and that they were also killed in here. The smells were almost overwhelming.

The door burst open and a body came tumbling into the cell. The first thing Nick noticed was that he could smell blood. The metallic scent seemed to fill the confines. The pain in Nick's stomach multiplied exponentially, bringing him to his knees.

Despite the pain, all he could think about was the smell of blood. Nick crawled toward the heap that was still motionless. It took a moment or two for Nick to realize that he could actually see the outline of the person lying there. The darkness was no longer complete. The body seemed to have developed a red aura that Nick could clearly see. It took another moment for him to realize that the aura was pulsing in tune with the man's heartbeat.

The pain intensified again. Gasping, Nick finally reached the form. He rolled the man onto his back. Instinct had taken over for rational thought. Intuitively he knew that the answer for his pain lay within the man's veins. Baring his teeth that had grown into fangs, Nick prepared to rip the man's throat open. Then he saw the man's face in the dim light. It was Dean. It was like a slap in the face. Forcing his pain wracked body into motion Nick scuttled over to the farthest corner he could find and huddled there. There was no way in hell he would feed on Dean, even if it meant dying.


	10. Chapter 10

_Hi. I know. I know. It's been FAR too long since I updated this story. My excuse? Well, there isn't one really. Everyone's busy, etc, etc. Anyway, I've had this written out for two weeks and it's taken me this long to get it into my computer. _

_The good news? This is the final chapter. After making you wait this long I thought it was the least I could do. As always, this hasn't been beta'd. So all mistakes are my own._

_I hope this is worth the wait. Take care. I'm going to take the rest of the summer off once I finish my other stories too but I'll be back as soon as the bug bites me again. Thanks for sticking with me!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TEN

Sitting still only made the pain worse. Growling deeply in his throat, Nick sprang to his feet and began pacing around the far end of his cell. Every step was agony but it also made the temptation worse as well. Nick had to rip his eyes off the inert body of Dean. Involuntarily they always strayed back to the red, pulsing form.

"No, no,no,no,no," Nick chanted under his breath. Pacing like a lion, he continued. He didn't know anything else to do.

A low groan from the direction of the lump brought Nick up short. Rational thought had pried its way into Nick's obsessed brain. If he smelt blood it meant that Dean was injured. Concern overrode all of his own problems. Padding quietly over to the eldest Winchester, Nick cautiously knelt down beside him. A second moan issued from Dean but he wasn't showing any signs of coming around. The need to feed tried to overwhelm him. Unsure of what else to do, Nick moved to the far corner and sank down into being careful to keep his back to Dean's inert body.

Dean hurt. The pain kept trying to drag him back up to the surface of his mind. Intuitively, though, he knew that an even deeper pain waited for him in the light.

While Dean considered the alternatives, the scene back in the house played before his mind's eye. Despite his hunter training, he'd been taken completely unaware by the three male vampires. One had been hiding beneath the wooden stairs. The second was beside a large wooden shelf in the deep shadows it created. The third had come from somewhere above Dean, probably in the shadows of the floor joists.

They'd attacked simultaneously, their combined weight forcing Dean to the ground. As he hit the hard floor, all of the air was forced from his lungs. Still, Dean tried to get onto his side, to struggle out from under the mass of cold, clammy flesh.

"Son of a bitch," Dean breathed as he fought to extract himself from the pile. He didn't have the breath to speak, his oxygen starved lungs burned in his chest.

"It's him," a harsh, grating voice said near Dean's right ear. "Don't kill him."

_What the hell..._ played through Dean's mind as too strong hands caught hold of him, pulled his face out of the dirt that covered the floor and stood him up on his feet. The darkness of the house made it hard to see anything but three pale faces as they came into view. Struggling as hard as he could, Dean couldn't break the grip they had on his arms, neck and mouth. A chill skated up and down his spine as the cold radiating off the attacked behind Dean seeped through his clothes. It felt like being pressed against a glacier.

"That's too bad. He's a fighter. It always makes the blood that much sweeter," the beast behind Dean's back breathed into his ear, causing yet another series of shivers.

"Let's go before he alerts the other one," the first vampire stated. The hand over Dean's mouth prevented that but the vampire wasn't taking any chances.

Sam. Damn. In his frantic fight to get away, Dean hadn't had time to think about his baby brother. They'd better not touch him or Dean would rip them limb from limb. Somehow.

"Can I feed on the other one?" the second voice asked. If a voice from the grave could sound pleading, this one did. "I'm hungry."

"Suck it up. Marcus only wants this one. Leave the other one alone." One of the three faces, the palest and ugliest, moved in front of Dean's face. An evil grin split the pale surface while his eyes looked like the depths of a well. "Marcus has something special planned for this one."

Daggers shooting out of Dean's blue/green eyes, he tried to kill the creature through sheer malevolent hatred. He wasn't successful. Still grinning, the vampire casually brought up his right hand and slugged the hunter in the side of the head. Darkness swallowed Dean whole.

OOOOO

Sam. Sam must be frantic, Dean thought as he shot to the top of his mind. Ignoring the splitting headache and the various other scrapes and bruises that were presenting themselves, Dean pried open his eyes. Then he blinked. Once. Twice. A third time. It took him that look to seek out the one small pinprick of dark grey in the black world on the other side of his eyelids. Relief flowed through him. He wasn't blind. Thank God. Breathing slowly and deeply, Dean listened intently. He wanted to know if he was alone.

"It's okay," an all too familiar voice came out of the darkness. "We're alone."

Heaving a great sigh of relief, Dean felt a sharp pain in his right side. One rib, possibly two, were cracked or badly bruised. So long as it didn't puncture a lung, Dean wasn't sure he cared at the moment.

"Nick," Dean croaked as he tried to pry his protesting body off the cold ground. He wasn't sure at the moment if he'd ever get warm again. Damn blood suckers. "Are you okay? What did they do to you?"

"I'm fine," Nick said in the darkness. Dimly Dean was aware of the older man moving around somewhere in front of him. Carefully, Dean got up into a crouch, his hands scoping out the area in front of, beside and behind him. A he found was open air and dirt under his feet. They were not in any modern man-made structure anyway. That was one piece of the puzzle. "How are you?"

Standing up, Dean was about to say he too was fine when his side caught and the earth beneath his feet shifted drunkenly. Instantly Dean felt Nick's familiar presence beside him. The older man's strong hands helped to keep him vertical until the spell passed. When Dean was breathing easier, he finally became aware of the coldness of Nick's body.

"What's wrong with you?" Dean gasped as he took a stumbling step away from the Legacy security expert. Something was very wrong here. Dean's teeth had begun to chatter with cold or fright, he wasn't sure which.

"They want me to feed on you," Nick stated, his voice completely devoid of emotion. There was a strange timber in Nick's familiar tones. It made the shivering that accompanied the teeth chattering deepen into Dean's soul.

"Feed on me? What? What did they do, turn you into a blood sucker?" The words came out slightly stuttered around Dean's chattering teeth. Unconsciously the hunter pulled his leather jacket a little tighter around his frame, particularly around his throat.

"Yeah," Nick replied in that same lifeless voice. "I'm very hungry."

The direction Nick was speaking in kept moving. Also, Dean could hear soft footfalls. The ex Navy SEAL was pacing back and forth in front of him. The earlier relief at finding Nick alive now curdled in his belly. Dean cautiously backed away from his friend until he came up against a wall. Feeling marginally safer, Dean tried to keep track of where Nick was.

"Well, you don't want to try me. I taste like garlic," was the only thing that came to mind. Frantically, Dean tried to come up with a plan that didn't include Nick drinking him dry.

"I'm not going to bite you, Dean. No matter how strong the need to feed becomes." Nick tried to reassure the younger man. Unfortunately, the rising hunger was becoming impossible to ignore. He honestly wasn't sure how much longer he was going to be able to hold out.

"Good to know," Dean responded. No bright ideas yet. Still thinking hard, Dean gave into the shaking in his legs and slid down the wall until he was sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest and his back braced against what felt like cold stone. Great, they were in a cave of some kind. Why did it always seem to involve caves when he dealt with vampires of late?

"You're bleeding." The proximity of Nick's voice coming out of the darkness made Dean jump while his skin tried to crawl off his body. Suddenly aware of a cold spot on the left side of his head, Dean brought his hand up to find a tender spot from where the vampire had struck him. Ghosting his fingers over the area, Dean found a two inch long, shallow head laceration that was bleeding like a son of a bitch.

"Are you okay?" Nick asked as he moved as far away from Dean as the cave would let him. The scent of the coppery fluid was sending sharp pains through Nick's stomach and into his chest. He really needed to feed. Unconsciously, he took a step toward where Dean was sitting on the ground. Catching himself, Nick moved back against the opposite wall. Trying to distance himself further from the all encompassing aroma, Nick turned his back toward Dean. Nick rested his feverish forehead against the cool surface of the wall. It helped marginally. At least the stale, mouldy smell from the stones helped to mask the scent of blood.

"I'm fine," Dean responded automatically as he continued to explore the wound, his fingers slick with his own blood. A gentle press on one end of it brought bile to Dean's throat. Damn it. He had a concussion. Swallowing rapidly, Dean tried to prevent the inevitable until it would no longer be ignored. Within a minute, the hunter was on his hands and knees on the ground, vomiting helplessly.

"You don't sound fine," Nick stated. He moved forward, the smell of the vomit covering the scent of the blood. At least Nick felt like he had better control at the moment. When he got within a foot of Dean's side, the heaving stopped and Dean tumbled sideways, away from the mess he'd med in the dirt.

"I'm fine," Dean repeated his throat raw from the stomach acids. Lying on his sore side, he skittered away from the foul mess. Even though he'd stopped touching his head, it had started to pound with a beat all its own.

Stopping dead in his tracks, Nick retreated to his wall. The pains were getting worse, stripping away all of his modern civility. Slumping against the wall, Nick began thumping his head against it. Anything to distract him from the tender morsel, oh so very few feet away.

OOOOO

Waiting for Dean, Sam knew something had gone wrong. It was taking his brother too long. His hunter's instincts burning through his body and mind, Sam began to pace around the house. The more circuits he made the more anxious he was becoming. The more anxious Sam became, the faster his thoughts became and the hotter he began to feel. Rounding the side of the house for the seventh time, Sam came face to face with Derrick and Jacob. His first instinct upon seeing the two men from the back was to jump them and rip them limb from limb. Then Sam caught their scent and unconsciously he knew who they were. The tension that had been building in Sam's body didn't drop at all.

"Where's Dean?" Derek asked when Sam padded up beside the two precepts. Fear for the older broth overrode any other concerns.

"He was in the house trying to find a way to get me in too. It's been too long, something's happened," Sam blurted out. He led the two older men to where Dean had entered the building.

"I don't think the police would have just cause to search this place without a warrant so let's see what we can come up with," Derek stated as he began a much slower examination of the outside of the house. Padding along beside the older man, Sam was virtually vibrating with unspent energy. There suddenly seemed to be an eternal well of food for his muscles that was flowing freely. As he followed, Sam's hands kept clenching into fists and then unclenching. He wanted to wrap his fingers around someone to start tearing.

"I've all ready done this," Sam grated. It was getting very hard to talk in anything but a shout. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins like wildfire.

"Humour me," Derek responded. Abruptly, he stopped as images flashed through his mind. Dean, hands grabbing him, Dean on the ground. Dean being dragged away, his body limp. The images gave him direction. Motioning the other two to follow, Derrick set off away from the house.

"Where are we going?" Sam demanded. Dean was in the house, probably hurt and Derrick was leading them deep into the woods beyond the house. What the hell?

"Be patient," Derek responded. Under the house must exist a series of tunnels because Derek got a very strong sense of Dean's presence but it was somewhere below him. The images he was getting did confirm one thing for him, they were dealing with vampires.

Just as Dean's presence felt particularly strong, Sam became very still. Stopping, Derek turned toward the youngest Winchester, a question dying on his lips.

The way Sam was standing, perfectly still, his head turned slightly to the side but tilted upward reminded the prefect of a hound dog catching a scent. The image was unsettling.

"What's wrong?" Jacob asked. He'd been at the rear of their little column.

"I can smell Dean," Sam stated, his voice a mixture of wonder and revulsion. As he stood there, Sam's body seemed to get steadily hotter. The need to get out of some of his restrictive clothes passed through his mind. "He's this way."

OOOOO

The cave entrance would have been impossible to find if the precepts had been on their own. Sam, however, led them straight to it, his nostrils flaring with each breath.

The further the trio moved, the less human Sam's actions were becoming. Derek cast a worried look at Jacob as they followed the younger man into the unknown. In response, Jacob pulled a flasliglht out of the side pocket of the light jacket he'd been wearing and a hand gun out of the back of his pants. Checking that the safety was off and that there was a round in the chamber, the Frankfurt precept stepped into the darkness.

"This is a very bad idea," Derek muttered to himself as he too pulled out a handgun and a flashlight. One thing all his years of hunting the paranormal had taught him to always be prepared. He'd grabbed the two instruments on reflex.

"I can hear you," Sam's voice floated out of the darkness.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Derek took the plunge.

OOOOO

The pains had become so severe that Nick was huddled in the corner, still rocking and striking his head dully against the wall. The wall was slick with his own blood but Nick didn't notice. The only thing he was fully aware of was the steady lub dub of Dean's heart on the other side of the cave. In an attempt to down the sound, Nick tried to time hitting the wall to coincide with the beating of the human's heart but it didn't really help.

Growling deep inside his throat, Nick pushed away from the wall, gaining his feet in an instant. He couldn't stand it anymore. The meat in the corner was talking, trying to convince him this wasn't a good idea but he ignored it. The meat's only purpose was to give him sustenance. That was the order of things. Nick was the predator, the meat was the prey.

Impossibly fast, Nick crossed the distance between him and Dean. In an instant, Nick caught Dean around the neck with one hand and pulled him to his feet.

"Nick," Dean hissed with what breath he could draw. "You'll hate yourself in the morning."

Growling louder, his teeth bare and elongating into fangs, Nick pulled Dean's struggling body toward him, intent on ripping open the meat's jugular. The anticipation of that sweet liquid coursing into his mouth and down his throat was almost orgasmic in nature. So intent was Nick on his prize that he didn't hear the cell door crash open.

A loud, vicious snarling behind Nick distracted him for a moment. Then something vaguely furry, very warm and very strong landed on his back. Almost nonchalantly, Nick tried to shrug his attacker off as his fangs pierced the skin on the side of Dean's neck. Dean's gasp sent waves of pleasure through Nick as the first drops of blood spattered onto his tongue.

The snarling got louder as too strong hands with too long finger nails pried Nick's hands off Dean. Pissed off now, Nick allowed the meat to fall bonelessly to the ground so he could deal with the nuisance one and for all.

Reaching the entrance of the cell, Derek and Jacob panned their flashlights inside, trying to get an idea of what was going on. What they found made their blood run cold. In the center of the room, Sam and Nick were engaged in mortal combat. Neither of them was fully human any longer as they struggled to kill each other. Mesmerized by the two bodies doing things that were definitely inhuman, Derek failed to notice the figure huddled against the wall just a few feet away.

Searching the cell with his flashlight, Jacob ignored the combatants for the moment. Finally, he spotted Dean. The younger man was barely conscious with one hand wrapped convulsively around his neck, red, dark blood seeping too fast between his fingers. "Keep an eye on the door," Jacob instructed as he slid inside the cell to reach Dean. Pulling his shirt out of the waistband of his trousers, Jacob ripped the bottom off. Ripped that into two pieces, he pulled Dean's hand away from his neck long enough to press a section against the bite mark and then wrapped it with the other piece, tying it as tight as he dared. Glancing at Nick and Sam as they continued to do battle, Jacob caught hold of Dean's collar and pulled him toward where Derek was standing at the entrance.

"We have to get Dean out of here," Jacob said over the grunts and snarls of the other two. Despite the difference in their sizes, they appeared to be evenly matched, neither getting the upper hand. "He's going to bleed to death."

The words penetrated the battle fog that had invaded Sam's mind as he entered the room. Until Jacob's statement the only thing that had mattered to the youngest Winchester was killing the vampire. It was a biological imperative like finding a mate and eating. The mention of Dean's name reawakened Sam, not the werewolf but the younger brother. Dean needed help.

"What about Nick?" Derek had to shout to be heard. It killed him to see his friend and colleague turned into a monster. He couldn't face leaving Nick here to continue to feed and kill humans. He knew that wasn't what Nick would have wanted. "We can't just leave him here."

As those words penetrated further into Sam's conscious mind, he looked closer at the creature he had pinned up against the wall. Behind the blood red eyes, the long fangs and snarling face, Sam saw his friend, his surrogate older brother. As Nick continued to struggle, Sam pulled him away from the wall only to smash his head and body against it with a crushing blow. Once. Twice. Three times. By the third time, Nick had stopped fighting and was hanging in Sam's grasp. As Sam watched through his too sharp eyes, Nick's contorted face slowly changed back into the man he knew and respected. Unsure of what to do now, Sam stepped back, allowing Nick to crumple to the ground in a heap.

Breathing like a locomotive, Sam took one step back, his hand/claws flexing as he imagined ripping Nick's head off. It was the only way to be sure. Instead, feeling some of the heat leaving his body, Sam turned to the two precepts.

"What now?" Sam asked, the words slurring slightly as his teeth began to retract back into his head, to look human again. As well the thick, black hair that had sprouted all over also began to retract, along with the scary looking nails. Under the werewolf facade, Sam's human cheeks burned brightly with shame. What the hell kind of freak was he now?

OOOOO

The trip through the tunnels took longer than it had the first time. Sam was no longer in full werewolf mode and so had a little more trouble finding their way out. Plus, he was burdened with Dean's semi-conscious body. Derek and Jacob had taken control of Nick. In his concern for his brother, Sam hadn't seen exactly how the two precepts did it but they somehow managed to restrain Nick while he was still unconscious or dead, Dean wasn't sure which. He chose to not pursue that line of thought. Despite the heat that Sam was still giving off or maybe because of it, Dean's body resting against his own felt so very cold and even though he hated to admit it, small.

"I'm so sorry," Sam said under his breath. Fearing he was going to drop Dean, Sam shifted him into a more secure position.

"What for?" Dean asked his voice barely above a whisper. Being up against his brother's body felt like sitting against a furnace. Not an entirely unpleasant sensation at the moment. He only heard the words from a great distance. Part of him was ecstatic to hear his brother's voice. The other part wanted to pound him into the ground for taking responsibility for everything, as always.

Relief chipped its way through the worry. Sam was so happy that his brother was conscious and lucid enough even if he did sound pissed off. "I shouldn't have let you go in there alone."

"You didn't 'let' me do anything. Now put me down," Dean grated. He hated the idea of his brother carrying him. That wasn't the way of the world, Dean took care of Sam, not the other way around.

Luckily for Sam, that discussion was forestalled by their arrival at the tunnel entrance. Stepping out of the way, Dean still firmly clutched in his arms, Sam let Derek scope out the area on the other side. Dean stirred as it to get out of Sam's arms. Angrily, Sam held him a little bit tighter, eliciting a low groan. "Sorry," Sam muttered reflexively as he waited for a sign from Jacob.

"Put me down. I'm not a baby," Dean grumbled, ignoring the pain in his side. When did Sam get so strong? How had Dean missed it?

"Sssshhhh," Sam hissed back. Jacob was taking too long. A quick glance over his shoulder at Derek, Sam turned back just in time to see Jacob step through the entrance, his gun coming up reflexively. For a split second Sam thought the precept was going to shoot him, something. Sam secretly thought he deserved to be shot, then he realized the gun was aimed behind him. Almost dropping Dean, Sam put him on the ground rather abruptly while turning to face the threat.

Four vampires were coming up the tunnel towards them. Derek still had hold of the unconscious Nick with one hand and began shooting at the advancing shapes with the gun in his other hand. He was joined immediately by Jacob. While silver bullets hurt like hell for vampires, they only sure way to kill them was to decapitate them. Unfortunately all three of them had left their machetes at home.

Sam felt the fire taking over again as Derek and Jacob emptied their guns into the still advancing vampires. Just as Sam felt like he was losing himself into the werewolf persona, the vampires began to drop. With a physical effort, Sam forced the werewolf back to the furthest reaches of his mind as the last vampire struck the ground, just short of Derek.

"Let's get out of here," Derek breathed. He knew the vampires wouldn't stay down long and that the noise would probably draw others. They were really not in a position to deal with any more of the vile creatures. Hefting Nick a little higher, Derek waited long enough for Sam to collect Dean before making a bee line for the entrance.

"What the hell was that?" Dean grunted as he was carried out into the sunlight. He'd seen the change coming over his kid brother. Despite having nothing left in his stomach, the sight had been enough to make him want to hurl.

"I'll tell you about it later," Sam said, breathing hard to keep up with Derek and Jacob. Shame turned his cheeks even redder than the exertion had. After everything the two of them had been through together, he didn't relish the thought of telling his older brother he was still a werewolf.

"You'd better," Dean said. The rest of the trip was made in silence, each brother lost in thought in their own worlds.

OOOOOO

"We should have taken Dean to a hospital," Sam grumbled. He knew Rachel had been through medical school but Dean looked so pale and the wound to his neck looked very jagged. Further, the fact that his older brother was lying quietly while the blond haired psychiatrist poked and prodded him was completely out of character. He was really worried about Dean.

"The wound and blood loss are easily treated," Rachel stated. "The explanation would have been another thing."

"Still," Sam pushed. Wearily, Dean opened his blue-green eyes and glared into his baby brother's blue-grey ones.

"Let her do her job. Now, what the hell was that back there?" The memory of Dean's brother's warped face splashed bile into the back of his throat.

"Ah," Sam hedged. He really didn't want to have this conversation now. In front of Rachel.

"The other shots weren't working on him," Andrew stated simply as he entered the room. In his thin hand he brandished a rather large, scary looking syringe.

"What do you mean?" Dean grated. Rachel was forced to hold him in the bed until he stopped struggling. In Dean's weakened state it didn't take much.

"I was reading your grandfather's journal," Andrew stated."I found the cure for someone who's been exposed as long as Sam. Drop 'em." From the expression on the young scientist's lean face. He was enjoying this a little too much.

"What?" Sam managed. Then Andrew reached around and jabbed him in the ass with the syringe. With excruciating deliberation, he injected the contents into Sam's butt. Sam felt his world shift a foot and a half to the right while his butt burned like it was on fire.

"Serves you right," Dean stated peevishly from the bed. Looking at his brother through a sheen of unshed tears, Sam could have sworn he saw an amused glint in those depths.

OOOOO

"I'm thirsty," Nick stated, sounding like a four year old in a pout. He'd awaken to find he was very securely strapped to a bed. It had taken a few disorientating minutes before he recognized the room as his own. He had dim memories of the time in the cell with Dean and of biting him. But at first all he really cared about was the all consuming pain and thirst.

When Nick had first woken up, he was alone in the room. Bellowing his pain and rage into the hair had brought Derek. The precept stood inside the closed door way and looked down at his friend, an intense sadness burning in his pale eyes.

"Did you hear me human? I'm thirsty!"Nick barked. Why was this piece of meat ignoring him? Frustrated, Nick tried to hypnotize the older man to get him to release him. Nothing happened.

Despite his best efforts, Derek cringed at being called 'human' like it was a derogatory remark. Still, he stood silently and watched. The door opened and Sam slipped inside. Two days after Andrew's shot and the boy was still walking stiffly.

"How is he?" Sam asked. Dean was on the mend. In fact, at the moment he was in the kitchen stuffing his face. Since being fed on, Dean couldn't seem to get full. The fact that two other legacy houses had managed to clear the caves of vampires seemed to have improved his appetite as well. The only sour spot was that Marcus's body hadn't been found.

"The same," Derek responded. He was beginning to lose hope. Despite Andrew's best efforts, he hadn't come up with anything.

"Come here, human," Nick ordered, turning his attention to the new arrival. Maybe he could work his charms on the tall guy. Same level of success.

"What are we going to do with him?" Sam asked. He hated to see Nick like this. The man he'd come to respect and love was lost to him behind a twisted, evil facade.

"I think I got it this time," Andrew announced as he burst into the room. The young scientist had been working day and night on a cure. He'd pulled ideas out of the Winchesters' two journals and the extensive Legacy library. He knew he was so close he could touch it but thus far the answer had eluded him.

"How much of this crap can you pump into him?" Sam asked, looking at the needle Andrew had in his hand with apprehension. His butt ached in sympathy.

"He'll be fine," Andrew responded glibly. Moving over to a now struggling Nick, he injected the amber fluid into Nick's right thigh. Angrily, Nick tried to dislodge the needle but Andrew got it all in before stepping back.

"How will we know it's working?" Sam asked.

"It'll taken ten to fifteen minutes to work its way from the muscle into the blood stream. After that it'll probably take half an hour or so before we see any type of reaction," Andrew stated. "I'll ber back in two hours to take blood. It's the most accurate way to tell."

Then Andrew was gone, headed back to his RV. Derek and Sam settled in to wait. Neither could face leaving Nick alone. They soon regretted their decision as Nick began cursing and swearing at them as he fought against his restraints. Both men took the abuse stoically, knowing that it wasn't really their friend talking.

Twenty minutes after the injection though, the curses changed abruptly. His face screwing up in pain, Nick fell silent. Nick's eyes closed as what looked like sweat broke out on his brow.

The grimace twisted Nick's face a little further as a few more minutes passed. Sam and Derek exchanged a worried look just as Nick's back arched off the bed and a blood curdling scream was ripped from his open mouth.

The ex-SEAL's limbs were shaking so hard Derek was afraid the heavy wooden bed frame was going to come apart as the fit or convulsion seemed to last an eternity.

The door to the room flew open as Andrew, Rachel and Dean burst inside. All of their faces were full of concern.

"Make it stop!" Sam demanded as he covered his ears with his hands. The longer the screaming went on, the larger the hole that was being ripped through his soul.

For a split second, both Rachel and Andrew stood in the doorway, still as statues. Staring at the scen in front of them had frozen them in their tracks. But Sam's words broke the spell. Stepping foward, the two began to examine Nick.

Ten minutes later, his voice completely gone from the torturous screams, Nick collapsed, exhausted onto his bed. His grey eyes slammed shut as consciousness escaped him.

"What did you do?" Derek asked. He tried to keep the accusation out of his voice when he addressed Andrew but it was hard.

"Well, at least we got a reaction this time," Andrew responded, looking a little sheepish. In his hand were two vials of blood that he and Rachel had taken during their exam. There were some very positive signs but Andrew wanted to make sure before he said anything. "I need to do tests on this blood before I'll know more."

Without waiting for the precept's response, Andrew slipped out of the room, nearly stepping on Alex who'd been out in the hallway since there was no more room in the bedroom.

"How did you stop it?" Derek pressed. Even though he'd watched everything the two had done to Nick, he really hadn't seen them treat him.

"We didn't," Rachel replied as strange sound emerged in the room.

After Nick's screams, Derek and Sam's ears were still ringing but there was definitely something else now in the room, some subtle change. Looking down at Nick, it finally hit Sam. For the first time since they'd brought him back to Angel Island, Nick Boyle was breathing. Unbidden, tears sprang into his eyes. Not really believing it, Sam stepped forward and gently placed a hand on Nick's forehead. A single tear tracked down Sam's face. Under his fingers, Nick's skin was warm.

"I think he's back," Sam said, looking at his brother. "He's alive."

OOOOO

A week later, Nick was slowly making his way down the stairs to the kitchen. He was starving. After being dead and a vampire, Andrew and Rachel were carefully watching all of his fluid and nutritional intake to make sure he didn't overload his newly alive system.

It was 3 a.m. The whole house was asleep as Nick padded across the carpet. He was tired of waiting. He wanted real food. Now. Walking into the room, the ex-SEAL nearly jumped out of his skin. Sitting at the counter was Sam. The youngest Winchester should have been sound asleep. He'd spent most of his days watching over Dean and Nick.

"What are you doing up?" Sam demanded as he stood up and moved to help Nick to the nearest chair. Waving Sam off, Nick managed it himself.

"I'm hungry," Nick responded, a self-conscious smile twisting his lips. "How about you?"

"Can't sleep," Sam responded as he sat back on his chair.

"Yeah, I can relate to that. All this resting is wearing thin," Nick stated. He was all ready exhausted from his short excursion but he wasn't going to admit it.

"I can imagine," Sam sympathized. "I don't think Rachel wants you eating much yet." Seeing the look on Nick's face, Sam gave in. "What are you in the mood for?"

"Steak," Nick responded, licking his lips. Seeing the fear that flashed over Sam's face, he quickly added. "Well done."

"I can do that."

Half an hour later, Derek and Dean entered the kitchen cautiously. From the clanging and clattering both men expected to find an army of the undead trying to break in. What they found was something all together different. Taking in the scene, the two men lowered their weapons and stared.

In that short time, Sam had managed to completely demolish the spotless kitchen. After he'd started grilling the steak on the stove Nick had decided he wanted some fish too. More than game to try, Sam had found, prepared and began to poach salmon for his friend. Then Nick had had another craving and on it went. By the time Dean and Derek arrived, Sam had one of pretty much every item available cooked or cooking while Nick happily tried everything as it became ready. At the moment he was alternating between a mouthful of steak and then one of salmon. It all tasted so good he couldn't decide between them.

"What's this?" Derek asked. He wasn't sure if he should be angry or laugh.

"I was hungry," Dean stated simply between mouthfuls. "Want some?"

For the first time in mouths, the kitchen at the legacy house felt like it used to. Smiling broadly, Derek led Dean in and took a seat.

"What's on the menu?" Derek asked as he marvelled at the mess Sam had made. Grinning too, Dean settled into the seat beside the older man. It killed him to admit it but he hadn't seen Sam this happy in a long time. Maybe never.

The demon blood was gone. So was the werewolf stain thanks to Andrew. For the first time since Sam was six months old he was completely and totally Sam.

Thanking whatever God that had made this possible, Dean accepted the piled high plate his kid brother shoved in front of him and dug in. Sam was actually a pretty good cook. Not that Dean would ever tell him that. Taking in the people around him as a lively discussion broke out, Dean felt something he hadn't felt since he was four. He was home. They both were.

THE END


End file.
